Outside the Limits
by Blacksheep28
Summary: Arwen is just a merc with the bad luck of being recruited for the Republic. At least, that's what she wants people to think. It doesn't take long before her facade starts falling apart, and darker secrets come to the surface...
1. Endar Spire

Cowritten with RaekaAmarok

u/6628355/

The explosion shocked her out of sleep. For a moment she was still on Malachor V, death on every side. The blare of alarms on the ship shook her from the last of the nightmare however, reminding her where she was. The Endar Spire, an escort ship for a group of jedi helping fight against the sith. Carth Onasi, the commander and ship's pilot, barked orders over the com instructing everyone to help get Bastila to the escape pods.

"Fuck. Let her die. Then I could have a good fucking night's sleep." Arwen stopped for a moment and rubbed her hand over her face. "Money… remember the money." She squeezed into the last of her armor and then grabbed her blaster. A soldier barely of draft age bursted into the room. He can't be older than 18, if he didn't lie on his draft and is even younger.

"Soldier Maro. Are you the only one here?" he demanded. The shaking of his hand betrayed his bravado. He was as green as they came. She almost laughed. How naive.

"What do you think?" she asked. She checked past him and ran down the hall, the youth on her heels. They turned a corner into a battle. The soldier quickly draws his blaster and begins shooting back. His face is pale as one of the sith soldiers drops under his blast. It's obvious there aren't going to be many survivors from this encounter. There's far too many of the enemy. The survivors are either skilled enough to escape, or bloody lucky.

The fighting is well underway so Arwen ducks behind a corner and begins to return fire. She let off a few rounds before aiming for the light fixture above one of the enemy combatants. A single shot sends a shower of sparks and glass raining down upon them, giving her enough time to pick them off like flies. Once they push past, she witnesses an all too familiar scene. Arwen doesn't even bother to take it in properly.

One of the jedi that had come with Bastila just before the bridge, battling a sith. The jedi wins, and the soldier shouts in triumph, only for another explosion to happen, the jedi sprawling as the ship shakes, ending up pierced through by a loose chunk of metal.

"He...he...that was a jedi that died," the soldier whimpered.

"Don't care." She replied and turned about. "Book it or die." Her heart thunders in her ears as she runs towards her only hope of survival. The com system opened once more.

"Retreat to the escape pods! The bridge is lost! I repeat, retreat to the escape pods!"

The soldier's just a touch too slow. Another sith enters the hallway. The kid doesn't even have a chance to scream before he's cut in half. The sith scans the hallway and begins to chase Arwen down. "Shit." she cursed and sped up. Her finger twitched next to the trigger and she desperately wanted to shoot at the sith, but she knew better. A blaster against a force user was like taking a party balloon to a gunfight.

The commander's voice comes sounded in her ear and she began to wonder if the world just hated her. "You're the last registered life form on the ship. Bastila's escaped. I can hold off the last escape pod for a couple minutes, but if you don't make it I'll have to launch it without you."

"I don't need a ticking clock!" she shouted as she scrambled to get to the escape pod.

Finally, her last hope came into view. She bolted into the pod door and slammed her fist onto the hatch button.

The escape pod is tiny, just made for three or four people if they squeeze in tight. Guess it makes it rather roomy with only her and Carth sitting in there. The guy looks tired, stubble on his face from where he hasn't had time to shave. He slams the button that ejects the escape pod, not even waiting for Arwen to buckle in.

They've barely jettisoned off when the ship explodes. The ship they'd been boarded from is aiming at the escape pods and doing its best to shoot them out of the sky. Most explode in space, only a handful making it to the safety of the planet below. A shot rocks against the escape pod, the last clear moment before Arwen's head slams against something, knocking her unconscious.


	2. Welcome to Taris

_Yellow and red flicker back and forth, battling each other. Battle rages around the pair. Despite that there's no noise, just the silence of space. Something rams from behind, and the yellow blade cuts too close to the red wielder-_

Carth did his best. They landed on the planet hard, and then he found out that the woman in the pod with him was unconscious. So not only was he going to have to get as far away from it as possible before any scavengers showed up, he'd be lugging dead weight while doing so. She came around, but it was pretty clear that she was going in and out of it. Best for her to stay low and recover while he scouted around.

He was lucky. He managed to find a set of cheap apartments and broke into one. It didn't take long to set up. Carth took the time to stock up some, and find out where they've landed.

It ain't pretty. They've landed on Taris. It's a nice planet-long as you're a human and live in the Upper City. Even then it's pretty rife with corruption. The Exchange owns Taris. Aliens are only useful as cheap labor or slaves, otherwise they are despised. The Lower City is run by two gangs that are tolerated by the Exchange, both having to pay tithes to keep from being taken over by the criminal organization. That's not even touching on the Under City.

The sith conquered this planet a while ago. He finds out only an hour before Arwen wakes up again that the planet is being placed under quarantine. They're searching for the survivors of the Endar Spire. Apparently Bastila landed on the planet and they're hoping the survivors can lead them to her. Their movements are going to be watched a lot more closely now.

As soon as Arwen wakes up he's hoping to organize a search for Bastila so they can get off this planet.

Her head hurts. Bad. For hours all she could concentrate on was the constant throbbing and her ever growing nausea. She threw up more than a few times. By the end, all she was doing was dry heaving. The images from her nightmares kept flashing in her mind, but she didn't have the wherewithal to process them.

The next day, her symptoms pass and she wakes to find herself in a crappy apartment on an unknown planet. The first thing she did was take stock of her armor, ammo, and weapons. It seemed to all be there, more or less. That was a relief. Her stomach is fragile and empty and blood puckered on the split in her lips. She gave them a quick lip and reached into a one of her larger hip pouches to pull out a shiny flask with a mandalorian seal on it. Arwen unscrews the cap and takes a big swig of the fiery liquid. Her stomach rumbles in complaint, but she ignores it in favor of another gulp.

Carth enters the apartment, pausing at seeing Arwen drinking. Was that really a good idea after a concussion? He shook his head. Not his concern. He just needed her functioning.

"Good to see you up. I'm Commander Carth Onasi. Are you well enough to head out?"

"Head out? With you?"

Carth frowned at her words. "Is there a problem, soldier?" He hoped not. It'd be a lot easier to escape with help.

"Actually, yes." Arwen said, pointing her flask at him. "Mercenary. Not soldier. And from where I'm standing… sitting, my paycheck just got blown out of the sky along with any obligation to you." Arwen took one last swig for good measure and stuffed her flask back into its pouch.

Carth sighed. He should have expected such a response. Not like most people could be trusted without anything in it for them. Seemed he'd have to play his cards.

"Fine. Good luck avoiding the sith and escaping the quarantine on your own then. It would be much easier to escape if we worked together, but your choice."

"Quarantine?" Arwen got to her feet and glanced out the window with a furrowed brow. "What quarantine?"

"The sith know the escape pods that made it landed in Taris. They're sending patrols through all the streets looking for the survivors. Until they're satisfied Bastila died, no one's allowed to leave Taris."

The first thought that came to Arwen's head would have likely gotten her shot. "Alright then. Do you have a plan, _Commander_?" She added sarcastically.

At least he had help now, no matter how reluctant that was. As soon as they were off Taris he would gladly part ways with her. He was half afraid she'd stab him in the back once he found a way for them to escape. He'd just have to hope she was a crappy pilot and would need him.

"First check out the local cantina. Find out if anyone else survived that crash, and see where we could find some credits. Then we'll figure out where to get a ship and see if we can loosen some lips to learn what we'll need to get around."

A smile crossed Arwen's face and she strode up to Carth. "You're not so bad," she sang with a pat on his cheek. "Oh, and you're paying for drinks. Call it hush money." She added with a wink.

Carth stiffened at Arwen's touch. Glowering he opened the door and gestured for her to come out after him. He froze, spotting three sith soldiers already beginning to raid the apartments and forcing the aliens that lived there out for inspection. One of them spotted him.

"Hey, that's not an alien! Freeze! You're under arrest!" Carth cursed and drew his blaster, quickly shooting at the patrol. The aliens panicked and began to run, one of the poor fellows getting shot down as he tried to escape.

"Quick to shoot, aren't they." Arwen said as she opened fire. She glanced around the room, looking for anything that could help. The window was one exit, but they would need a way to barricade the door. Not easy. Not enough time. So instead, she grabbed one of her grenades.

"I always did love things that go boom." Arwen clicked the button and tossed it as far down the hallway as she could. She grabbed hold of Carth's clothes and pulled him behind the wall.

Head ringing slightly from the explosion he looked back out. "Well, that's one group that's never going to bother us again," he muttered. He ducked back into the apartment and rapidly began to grab everything that was even remotely useful, shoving it all in a bag and throwing it over his shoulder.

"Looks like a new hideout is on our list as well."

While Carth was looking around the apartment, Arwen took the opportunity to search their newly dead friends. It was pretty slim pickings, but she did find a small coin pouch that had managed to not be completely destroyed in the blast. "Drinks are on them!" She said, raising the coin pouch high enough for Carth to see it.

Carth sighed again. He had a feeling he'd be doing that a lot with her around. He had little patience for a mercenary with no honor and a love of alcohol.

"Right, let's go." They managed to make it out to the streets without being questioned again. The soldiers were out in force however, making it difficult to relax. It was a good thing he had chosen to wear his old jacket overtop of his uniform when they were attacked, or he would be arrested already. Perhaps an outfit that didn't scream 'republic soldier' was in order.

He entered the cantina and immediately ordered a bantha blaster. He settled down to look around.

A couple sith soldiers were off duty and drinking, the regular patrons all avoiding them like the plague. A group of rich humans clustered together, discussing business and the tragedy of the quarantine stopping them from traveling freely. A table was laid out for gambling with a decent crowd around it, and another group hovered near a hutt and a few video screens, a door in the back leading elsewhere. More patrons gathered around a local band.

Arwen scanned the bar and marked the humans and the gamblers. She meandered past both groups before doubling back to grab a drink at the bar. She headed to the gambling table and set the glass down between two the players. "Got room for one more?" From her pouch, she produced the pouch that she had grabbed off of the dead soldier and set it next to her drink.

The gamblers glanced up as she sat down with them, one of them grunting in reply.

"Always room for fresh meat at the table, sweetheart," one said, "Pulled in by the quarantine? Wrecking a lot of business, I hear."

"Unfortunately," she sighed. Arwen settled down into her seat and entered the game. She wasn't concerned about winning, she just had to not lose. "One night you are drinking your troubles away, and the next you are trapped on a planet for no fucking reason. It's all bullshit I tell you."

Another laughed. The game started, cards dealt out evenly around the table.

"You've certainly got that right," a woman said, "It's even getting in the way of the Exchange. Hear Davik's tearing his hair out trying to get the access codes to the barricade."

"What? And how's he planning on outrunning the ships, then?"

"The Ebon Hawk, that's how. Haven't you heard? Fastest ship built yet. Not anything to take into battle, but for a smuggler is a dream."

"You really think he could make it past the barricade?' Arwen said casually as she picked up her cards.

"Only if that droid of his manages to work," a guy snorted, "Raise 10." A few mutters passed around the group, throwing in chips and exchanging cards.

"Ya think it won't?" a younger guy asked.

"It's being done by that twilek mechanic. I wouldn't count on it. You know how aliens are."

"That's brat talk, and you know it," the guy said, "Aliens are just as good as humans with making stuff."

"Doesn't mean any of 'em can make it up here. Most aliens are drummed out, if they manage to afford being up here in the first place."

"Here. Here. I meet." Arwen said as she exchanged a single card. "This whole thing is charade. I heard they were looking for some crash survivors, but I don't buy it."

One of the handful of women at the table snorted. "You'd better believe it, honey. The sith attacked someone right above the planet, and some of 'em escaped. Most have already been captured though. Probably only gonna be a couple days before they finish analyzing what they found and release the quarantine." A guy laughed.

"Ha! That's what they want people to believe. Everyone knows the swoop gangs got ahold of a couple of the pods before the soldiers barged in."

"You think they're harboring some survivors?"

"Who knows? If they're talking, it's not to anyone up here. People in the Lower City probably know." The fellow scratched his head. "Good reason for wishing for the quarantine to hurry up and end. Gonna miss out on a lot of news from there."

"Why would the people in the Lower City harbor survivors? What good reason could they possibly have to keep this damned quarantine up?" Arwen asked incredulously before folding for the round.

The round ended and the chips were raked in before a new one started, chips pushed in just as eagerly as the first time.

"Power struggle," one answered, "The swoop gangs are in an all out war. The sith have actually been struggling to maintain control. I wouldn't be surprised if they decided to bomb it."

"But if they got rid of the Lower City, who else would we blame our troubles on?" Arwen jested. She took her cards and started sorting them in her hand.

Quite a few of the gamblers chuckled at her words. "Never said they were very forward thinking. Honestly, as powerful as the sith army is now it ain't half as good as it was with…" The speaker fell silent, unwilling to name the former sith. Someone coughed, trying to distract from it.

"You hear about Holdan?" the gambler said.

"What's that idiot done now?" a guy responded.

"Was flirting with one of the girls, and got a little too handsy. Too bad for him, this girl actually knew how to fight back!" The gamblers laughed.

"Good for her! About time someone showed him that being Exchange doesn't mean getting whatever you want."

"Would be better if he hadn't put a bounty on her. Not that anyone but idiots and cowards would touch a bounty placed for such a stupid reason."

"Here, here." Arwen said with a tap of her fist on the table. She played a few more rounds, making sure that she didn't win or lose too much. Finally, after a round where she lost more than she would have liked, Arwen stood. "That's it for me. If I stay any longer you lot are going to take me for everything I've got."

Arwen made her way back to Carth. She bumped him with her elbow to announce her presence and ordered some water from the bar. "Tell me I'm not the only one who's been successful."

Carth knocked back a drink and looked over at Arwen. "I'm scheduled for a duel later tonight, and another in the morning, for some quick money. Learned where we can crash as well, and a place to pick up some supplies." He grimaced at his outfit, still feeling conspicuous in the military outfit, especially since it was the wrong side for this planet. He was proud to be republic, but that didn't mean stupid.

"What did you find out?"

Arden quickly summed up what she had learned from the gamblers, skirting most of the details. He didn't need to know them anyways .Carth listened intently to the wealth of information Arwen had managed to gather. That would be useful in finding Bastila. Perhaps he'd be lucky, and the swoop gangs would be holding her prisoner. At least there was a higher chance of rescuing her from there than trying to do so with the sith. The real question was how to get some of those access papers needed to get to the lower city. Perhaps one of the duelers would know. He'd ask after his duel. Better credit that way at least.

"I'm thinking I need to meet some of my new, rich friends. They might know something. Or they might know nothing. Either way, I might get a better job."

Arwen playfully raised her glass to Carth and downed it in one go. She returned it to the table and straightened herself up a bit before sauntering over to her next targets. He had been hoping to slip out and get some supplies before fighting, but Carth didn't feel right leaving Arwen without back up if she got into trouble. Even if he didn't trust her, they were currently a team. Besides, who knew if she'd stick around if he left.

"Evening." She called to them cheerfully as she inserted herself into the group.

One of the better dressed ladies tossed a condescending glance at Arwen.

"Ah, our waitress. Here to take our drinks?" she asked snottily.

 _Only if you want a blaster to the face._ She thought. Arwen fought to keep a business smile on her face, but the strain in her cheeks told her she wasn't doing very well. "Actually, I want to serve you in a different way. Name's Kari. I was stationed on the planet for a short time for my job, but the contract finished. Now with this quarantine my plans to leave are well… you know. Figured with tension running high that your handsome group might benefit from my expertise. Maybe we could make an arrangement that would be mutually beneficial."

That definitely caught the group's attention. One of the men studied her, eyes slightly narrowed. The woman looked absolutely disgusted at business being discussed when she was relaxing, despite this being exactly the kind of place such things were done.

"What kind of work do you do?" he asked casually.

"Little bit of everything." She said with a shrug. "But mostly protection. Protection with discretion." Arwen gave a slight bow and a little wink. "Personal, cargo, or location. I will do any and all for a reasonable price."

One of the men sneered. "And why should we believe you're any good?" he demanded.

"Well, I could take out my blaster and prove to you right now how good I am, but since we are in polite company..." Arwen looked over at the woman and gave her a sarcastic smile. "How about this. You pay me half up front and if I don't deliver, you don't have to pay the rest."

The group laughed. "Nice try, but how about no. You'll have to prove you have skills before being hired."

Arwen smiled. "Excuse me." Her right hand shot out. In one smooth second she snatched the man's drink and chucked it in the air. Her left hand moved like lightning. Her blaster was out and a shot rang out. Shards of glass and liquid rained onto the floor. Arwen gave her gun a little twirl and smoothly holstered it again. "Is my resume satisfactory?" She sang sarcastically.

The group flinched as one. Only one woman didn't seem slightly scared of her after that showing. The woman smiled slowly.

"I might have a job for you," she said smoothly, "Just a small one, mind you. You'll need to prove yourself. I have some papers that need delivering." The woman pulled a piece of paper and pen out of her purse, scribbling down an address. She pushed it across to Arwen.

"Head here, and tell them Sallia Ventia sent you."

Arwen snatched up the paper and gave it a quick glance. "Alright. Anything else I need to know?"

"You'll be told the details when you get there. This is only a small job, understand. You'll need to prove you're trustworthy before I give you bigger jobs." The woman waved her hand imperiously, as if dismissing the mercenary.

"Righto." Arwen said, equally dismissive. She made her way back to Carth and waved the paper at him.

"Got a job. Let's hope it eventually leads to the Lower City."

Carth nodded his head. "Let's just go to the supply store. I'd rather not advertise myself as...not supportive of our dear _friends_ , when the duel starts. We can come back after we've got more cash." Carth headed out of the cantina, one eye fixed on Arwen to make sure she wouldn't decide to try and turn him in. Unlikely, as he could turn her in just as well, but still, best to be sure of things.

"To be fair, I'm supportive of any friend with enough cash." She heartily replied. "But I guess our current comradery is special. Partially because I like you. Mostly because I really don't like prison." Arwen caught the look on Carth's face and laughed. She slapped him playfully on the shoulder.

"Relax. I'm on your side."

Carth stared daggers at Arwen at her teasing words. He knew it, she was planning to betray him! The only thing holding her back was that she currently wasn't able to. He drew his blaster when she slapped him on the shoulder, half suspecting that it had been an attack. He was stunned when it wasn't. Slowly he put his blaster away.

"For now," he muttered. He didn't believe that wouldn't stop after they left Taris. After all, they were only partners until they managed to get clear of the sith quarantine.

In the supply shop Carth managed to bargain away his republic uniform for a more mercenary style of armor. He did his best to not look recognizable in case the shop owner decided to report that they'd talked to a republic soldier, but thankfully sith soldiers were never particularly kind to informants, especially ones that could have possible republic leanings, as the possession of his uniform would show.

The supply shop was pretty good. Arwen was like a kid in a candy store. She drooled and obsessed over the blaster, weapons upgrades, and armor attachments. There was one particularly beautiful knife that she feel in love with. The curved edges. The serrated teeth. That handle! But, money was money and she needed more. So, she grabbed what she could and resupplied where she needed it. Before leaving, she turned to the clerk and whispered, "I will be back for my baby."

Carth checked the time and looked at Arwen. "Time to head back." He headed toward the canteen, and leaned towards Arwen. "I'd suggest making a bet about the outcome of the duel with the big guy in the corner. Sith connections, and the guy I'm up against isn't nearly as good as he thinks he is. Could have possibilities."

Carth's tips were good, but not as solid as she would have liked. She grabbed his collar and looked him dead in they eye. "You lose, and I will remove your manhood."

Carth glared at Arwen as she went to place her bets. He didn't need the threat to make sure he won, and he certainly wouldn't let some stuck up mercenary get the best of him. Grumbling he tried to push that out of his mind, and focus entirely on the battle before him.

The slightly drunk sith soldier leaned over one of the dueling arena monitors. He didn't look like one of the feared sith soldiers. He barely looked like he could wield a blaster, only the slightest flicker of awareness in his eyes giving away his military training, and even that was heavily dulled by alcohol.

"Com'on, bring in the money!" he shouted. Several of the other patrons shot him dirty looks, unimpressed by the soldier but unwilling to tangle with him.

Arwen lined up her bets and settling in for the fight. She clung to her tickets and dreamed of her knife. Or the brutal beating she'd give to Carth if he lost.

The drunken shoulder caught her attention. At first she glared at him like the rest. She wanted nothing more than to slam his fat head against the monitor. But, her better judgement stopped her.

"Who'd you bet for?" She asked the man.

The soldier glanced at her. "Deadeye Duncan, one of the few ranked duelists we have on Taris. He tends to beat out most of the rookies who try to challenge their way into the ranks, though he's certainly not the best."

"Well, that explains the odds. Guess I should have bet a little smarter. Since I'm stuck on this rock, I'm gonna need the money."

The soldier arched a brow. This was promising, a foreigner that wouldn't know of the sith army's reputation on the planet and not resist talking to him. He grinned.

"Well, live and learn. Say, why don't you watch with me? I can tell you about the duelists."

"Not a bad plan. Hopefully I can bet better next round." She said as she joined him.

Score! A hot lady that wasn't disgusted by what he did as a soldier and also wasn't a fellow soldier. Not that the women in the army weren't nice, but dating one was hard when he worked with them, doing the very things that he despised. Ah well, the money was good at least, and it looked like the sith were winning this war anyways.

"There's five top duelists you can watch here. There's rookie matches occasionally, but like I said, most don't even get past Duncan, and he's the worst of them. Not a bad shot, but it's obvious he's purely trained for sport. No true grasp of strategy for taking down opponents. Heh, at least someone can fight for fun." The soldier shot back more of his drink.

"Then there's Gerlon Two-fingers. I know what you're thinking, 'what kind of name is that?' A fitting one for a former champion. He used to be the best shot in the business, won every duel he was in-until his blaster blew up with him. They claim that it was an accident, but I wouldn't have put it past the Exchange to rig it to blow. Change up the line-up, give fresh blood a shot. You know?" Arwen listened to the soldier's explanation. It was exactly useful for her "mission," but it was a conversation starter and gave her a leg up in betting. If she was lucky, she could even make enough money to bribe her way off the planet. How nice that would be. The she could get as far away from this nonsense as and as fast as she could go.

Carth entered the ring, and Sarna fell silent, watching the republic soldier. "Hm. That's surprising. Wouldn't expect to see a soldier wasting time in a dueling ring."

"He one of yours?" She asked, acting like this was news to her as well.

He shook his head. "I don't think so. I would be able to say for sure, but plenty of reinforcements have been sent planetside to help hunt down the republic escapees, so I can't recognize everyone anymore. His bearing gives him away though. If he isn't part of the sith army he might be a retiree from the Mandalorian Wars."

"Could be. So long as he gives us a good fight, that's all that really matters." Now they were getting somewhere. "Any word on the progress by the way? I really don't want to be stuck planet side for any longer than I have to be."

Sarna frowned. "Not really supposed to talk to civilians about progress on the hunt."

"Aw. C'mon. I'm not asking for anything top secret here. Just a little update. Please." Arwen touched his arm as she begged sweetly, doing everything in her power to surprise her growing gag reflex. Normally, she just beat this stuff out of people. Of course, that was always an option.

Sarna frowned. "That's why you're talking to me, isn't it? To try and get information out of me. You're not a real dueling enthusiast," he muttered. Angry he pushed Arwen away. "I'm not something for you to toy with."

And there went the last of her patience. "How about we step outside and I show you who's not a real dueling enthusiast." She said through gritted teeth. Guess she'd just have to get what she wanted the hard way. At least the hard way was fun.

He snorted. "Nice try. I'm here to relax though, not pick fights with some two bit merc." Sarna sulkily took another long draw from his drink, eyes watching the screen. The soldier was doing surprisingly well. It looked like he just might take out Duncan. Seemed he'd lose his bet.

The very hard way. Or maybe just some payback. She was too angry to figure out which. "Two bit this you drunk shit." She mumbled before decking him.

The soldier staggered back, completely unprepared for the sudden blow. Furious he turned to her. "Why you little-" He swung at her hard.

Drunks were both very easy opponents and really obnoxious to fight. Their swings were weak and badly coordinated and they basically forgot that dodging was a thing. However, punches had almost no effect on them despite the damage and they were increasingly difficult to predict.

Arwen threw up her hands, but not to stop the blow. Instead, as her arms went up, her body went back and to the side. One hand directed his fist harmless down and past her. The other snapped straight and flew towards the soft part of his neck, like a blunt blade heading straight for his Adam's apple.

His head snapped back, and in no time at all the fight had broken out into an outright brawl. Not that the sith soldier was holding his own very well. He might be competent when sober, but his skills were still no match for Arwen's, and he was drunk to boot. The disturbance quickly drew attention of the other patrons, people backing away and whispering to each other. The large hutt in the corner that ran the dueling arena bellowed, furious at the fight.

«Stop brawling now! People pay good money to see fights in my arena, not in the open!»

Arwen used her size to her advantage in fights. She was small, quick, and agile compared to most men. As soon as her attack finished she stepped back and readied her next attack. Her hands were raised and ready for the next incoming blow. But everything ended as soon as it had begun.

The hutt's warning was not to be taken lightly. Arwen took another step back. Scowling, but relenting.

"Apologies." She said and stormed off to an empty seat far away from the sith. This planet sucked and this job was not even a little worth it.

The sith soldier slowly picked him up. He looked even uglier after the fight. Scowling he grabbed another drink and went back to the monitor. At least she won. It was a small consolation prize. She could take her winnings and splurge on that beautiful knife. Unfortunately, even that didn't improve her mood.

Arwen had completely turned in on herself by the time Carth joined her. Her wounds weren't really serious, but she imagined she at least looked a little more ruffed up than usual. She ran a hand through her messy hair before returning it to the tight cross she had over her chest.

"What the hell happened to you?"

"Not a damned thing." She spat.

Carth stared at her suspiciously. He was pretty sure she was lying, but he wasn't sure what about. Hopefully it was just a small thing that wouldn't cause problems. Or did she betray him while he was dueling? He glanced around the cantina, seeing if anyone was looking at him funny. There were a few, and one sith soldier was looking at him more closely than he'd like. Carth's hand twitched for his blaster. Arwen saw the funny look the sith soldier was giving them and she flipped him her middle figure with one hand and slapped her elbow with the other.

"Fine, here." He dropped a small cut of his earnings from the arena before her and headed out to return to the supply store. He wanted to stock up on supplies before securing a new hideout.

She took the her offered cut and morosely followed after Carth. Her mood only improved slightly when she grabbed her dagger and a few grenades. Although, the look she was giving them was halfway to hysterical and completely dangerous. She stroked the edges of one like and pet and dreamed off all the ways she could get into trouble with it. And she had a job to act as the perfect excuse. Too bad she still had some chores left to do.

"Alright, boss. You got any ideas about our new home?"

"Yeah, there's a new set of apartments, mostly humans, that has been built. It's cheap enough that no one will notice if we break in and take one, and the building's on a grid so we'll have water and electricity." "Ooh, commodities and squatting? It must be Christmas." Arwen chuckled as she followed Carth. They headed through the Upper City, ending up parked near the elevator leading to the Lower City. It was obvious that this was where those who managed to earn enough to crawl out of the Lower City ended up, and those about to be pushed below. Everyone was cheerful, but it was a tense cheer that spoke of deprivation and a burning need to not fall.

The new neighborhood was nothing to sneeze at, but Arwen was sure she had seen worse. "I've got my job to attend to soon. What are your plans? Unless, of course, they are to follow me around like I'm some naughty child. In that case, I don't want to hear it."

Carth glared at Arwen. "Go ahead to your job. I'll see what I can find about getting us access papers to the Lower City."

Arwen unloaded her stuff and gathered everything she thought would be useful and not incriminating. She didn't really know what kind of job it was, but her work always seemed to run along the same lines. Blasters, grenades, a knife, handcuffs, snacks, booze, and a leash were among the things that she brought.

Arwen gave Carth a wave as she headed out the door. Her spirits were high as she whistled her way towards the designated address.

A couple men stood at guard outside the warehouse Arwen ended up arriving at. They both looked bored, but they shifted to alert at Arwen's arrival, or at least partially alert. The one man grasped a blaster.

"You got business here?" he asked.

"Yeah," she replied unperturbed. "Sallia Ventia sent me."

"Ah. You must be the new courier." The guard turned and waved forward someone from the back. A rather nervous looking man darted forward carrying a datapad. The guard turned back to Arwen.

"Alright. The job's simple. The datapad's for a business deal she's having with the Allo'hs. You can find their shop in the robotics sector, near where that twilek managed to swindle a spot. Deliver the datapad, don't look at it, and you'll be paid. Got it?"

"Got it. Anyone or anything in particular I need to worry about?" She asked.

"Someone might approach you to try and buy the datapad. That's the biggest worry. Just do your job and you'll be fine."

"Alright." Arwen gave them a two fingered salute and headed out the door. She headed back towards her base, taking a ride to expedite the process. Once inside she put the pad down on the table and went back to her stuff. She shifted through a few of her items.

"Aha!" She exclaimed, pulling out a tiny device. Jumping up, she headed back to the table and plopped down in one of the seats. Arwen smiled and cracked her knuckles.

"Hey Carth? You in?" she called as she booted up the pad. "Now let's take a look and see what secrets you hold."

Carth had been planning on following some sith patrols, seeing if he could find out which ones had access to below and figure out how to steal those papers. He had just purchased a datapad for recording such information and returned when Arwen returned to the apartment. He watched her with some suspicion. Wasn't she on a job?

He sat up straight as she took out a pad he _knew_ wasn't hers. "What are you doing?"

"Being nosey." She replied cheerily. Arwen glanced up at Carth and rolled her eyes. "Relax. I didn't steal it and it's just a little peak and then I'll deliver it like I'm supposed to. Some people have no faith. Also, how's your hacking skills?"

Carth hesitated for a moment. He still didn't agree with what she was doing, but considering their situation, it wasn't like he could afford to be picky about her morals. Snapping at her about looking at something she claimed to be delivering anyways wasn't something really worth fighting about, not as long as he needed her help.

"With navigational computers and hotwiring, I'm your man. About hacking datapads and computers however, I just know the basics. What about yourself? A lot of hacking in your work?"

Arwen shrugged. "Enough. Plus I have some help." Arwen tapped her little device and smiled. She doubled over and began to crack through the data pad's security. "C'mon darling, let me in."

The datapad opened not long after, a short beep alerting to the fact that the security was opened. Inside was basic data on a deal, for a safe route and a percentage of profit in exchange for allowing various robotics to be stored and transported through the area. Nothing huge, except for the rather obvious tax evasions, but on a planet like Taris the authorities most likely wouldn't even bother, let alone be surprised.

Arwen frowned at the datapad. The best she could hope to get from this information was the opportunity for a heist. She had neither the manpower, nor the time to deal with something like that. Especially not with captain stick ass riding hers. It could be useful to sell. But that was about it. Arwen quickly copied the data and retraced her steps through the digital firewalls, replacing them as she went. No use getting caught right off the bat. Hopefully, they wouldn't notice if they didn't look too carefully.

With that, Arwen stood and shoved the datapad and a few food bars into a nearby satchel. She grabbed it and headed out the door. "See you later Carth."

Arwen moved double time to get to her destination. As she approached the robotics sector, she pulled out one of the bars and began munching on it. Hopefully, she had moved fast enough to make them think she had just taken her sweet time. Arwen wandered, searching for the shop in question.

Okay, he couldn't leave her to wander this time. Obviously she was going to get into trouble if he didn't watch her back. Carth sighed, and made sure his blasters were charged before beginning to trail behind her.

As a pilot, he hadn't needed to practice stealth much. As a survivor of the Mandalorian Wars and career soldier, he was better than expected. He moved through the crowd with a surprising amount of ease considering his jumpiness.

"Finally," Arwen mumbled as the shop came into view. She stepped through the front door and walked right up to the counter. "I have a delivery for Allo'hs." She said to the clerk.

The clerk nodded, and held out his hand for the datapad. "Hand it over here, please," she said politely.

Arwen started to hand the datapad over, but she pulled it back. "Actually, I'd like to give it to the owner if you don't mind. Just a complimentary precaution."

The clerk stared at her for a moment. Sighing he buzzed someone further in. "Allo'hs, a courier's here with a datapad for you." He paused, listening to the response. "No, I don't know who sent her." He looked up at her. "Who hired you?"

"Sallia Ventia"

"It's Sallia Ventia." The clerk sighed and looked up at Arwen. "You're clear to go in. Second floor, third door on the left."

"Cheers." She gave him a lazy, two fingered salute and headed to the back. She followed the instructions and knocked on the door. "Special delivery!"

The black human accepted the datapad, and opened the security codes. He quickly scanned the info, confirming it was real. "Good." He opened a door and withdrew a credits stick, tossing it to her.

"Here, 200 for your troubles."

"Thank you." She pocketed the credits and smiled. "If you ever need an extra hand or blaster, hit me up at the cantina on the other side of town." Arwen gave him a wink and headed out. No reason to stick around. The pay was alright at best and she had a backup to get a little extra cash on the side. It was better to build a reputation and not stick around long enough to be questioned on why she had taken so long to deliver that simple package.

Below there was a guard watching Carth suspiciously. The soldier was leaning casually on a nearby wall, though the flicker of his eyes betrayed how alert and ready he was for a fight. He tensed up as Arwen came back into view.

"Hey," he said casually.

"Well, well. If it isn't my own personal stalker." She said. "Can you be any less conspicuous? Sheesh."

The guard relaxed slightly at that. "You need a hand?" he asked casually. Carth scowled.

"I'm not stalking her. We work together," he grumbled. That was mostly the truth, after all. They had worked on the same ship, even if they hadn't encountered each other, and were working together to escape the sith. So, not stalking. At least it seemed Arwen hadn't done anything. Even his paranoia had to admit she'd been in there for too short a period of time to cause trouble.

Arwen smiled wickedly. "Oh, no. I don't know this person. Never seen them in my life. Not at all. Total stalker. Been hounding me for months." Her tone was far too light to be serious. But she couldn't resist the opportunity to push Carth's buttons.

Carth twitched with exasperation. The guard chuckled. "I see. Well we'll be sure to look you up for more business in the future then," he said.

"We're off tonight," Carth told Arwen, "Thought we'd check out this party I heard about." The guard chuckled.

"Enjoying the slow period from the quarantine, huh? Doubt it'll last long. The sith ain't exactly known for their patience." Carth grinned crookedly.

"Something like that."

"A party? Is this a date?" She continued to tease. "Sorry, but I'm married to my blaster. You'll have to take it up with him."

Carth sighed. He needed Arwen to get moving. He couldn't explain why he wanted them to go to a sith soldier party in public, but wanted her to know about the plans. "Not a date. Did you really forget about our dueling buddy? The one that invited us to that party with his friends?"

"Yes." She said flat out. "And if we are going to a party, I'm not planning on remembering that either."

Carth sighed. It was a good thing he needed her help, or he would have strangled her by now, if not outright left her behind. He turned back and started to head back to the apartment to get ready for the 'party'.

 _Ah, so much fun._ Arwen thought as she followed Carth back to the apartment. She wondered who she could sell the information too. Perhaps someone at the party. Although, she'd have to be careful. Wouldn't want word getting out that she had leaked the information. Maybe she could set up the trade and use Carth to complete the transaction. Not that he would help willingly. Darn.

Back at the apartment, Carth brushed up, and readied his weapons. He packed everything he didn't want to leave behind.

"A new patrol is being sent down to the Lower City tonight. Apparently they're supposed to not just scout down there, but check in the Under City and make sure it's contained. That'll give us free access through the entire planet if we get those papers. Luckily for us the morons decided tonight would be a great time to have their first tarisian ale." Carth smirked. Tarisian ale was a favorite for hard drinks. Few things could knock someone back like that did and still be affordable.

"Tarisian ale? Well why didn't you say so!" Arwen hastily gathered her things, removing more than she took. Her favorite blaster would not come. Neither would that pretty knife. No. She'd take the cheaper things. They would work well enough. Besides, things tended to go missing after a night of drinking. She didn't want to misplace anything important.

"After you."

"Arwen, we aren't going there to get drunk," Carth sighed, "we're going there to steal from enemy soldiers. Soldiers, I might remind you, connected to _sith_." Carth's eyes darkened. "You've heard what they do to talented Republic soldiers when they're caught, haven't you? The stories?"

That gave Arwen some pause. She made a face. "You should be careful."

"Oh, you think they won't mess with your head?"

"A bit too late for that." She added, somewhat darkly. "But, if it makes you feel better, I'll only steal the booze. But you can't stop me from getting pissed afterwards."

Carth blinked, a little surprised. It seemed she had some of the same problems a lot of soldiers had. He had to sympathize with that. "Yeah, go ahead. Take the night after we get the papers."

"I don't need your permission. Now get going." She said, giving him a not so soft kick in the back of his legs.

Carth scowled, again reminded why he disliked her.


	3. Under City

The pair of them worked surprisingly well in getting to the party and breaking in. Carth struggled to not twitch every time they went near a sith soldier. Practically surrounded by them he wanted nothing more than to grab his blaster and kill every single last one of them. At least in the apartment (which was far cushier than any apartment he would have expected a foot soldier to have access to. Maybe they bribed an officer?) they were out of uniform, so Carth could stop twitching towards his weapons.

He managed to join in joking and trading stories after a stiff drink, though all it did was give him the faintest buzz. Just looking at them made the memories of the people he'd lost flash through his mind. Arwen wouldn't be the only one drinking when they got back to their apartment. He found out that the patrol that was heading out had stored all their stuff in another room so they'd be ready to grab it and head out the next morning. Now it was just a matter of waiting for the people to drink enough to not notice Carth and Arwen going where they shouldn't.

Arwen, unlike Carth, was completely in her element. She was laughing and trading stories with the soldiers as if it was nothing. To her, it really wasn't. One different paycheck would have seen her on their side after all.

"Hey, hey! What's the difference between the republic and yogurt?" Arwen waited for a moment and then loudly proclaimed. "Yogurt has an active culture!"

A series of laughs went around the group, which were probably aided by the drink. "No, no! I got another. How do you stop a resistance fighter from drowning? Take your foot off the back of his head." A roar went up and drinks were toasted.

"Another round!" Arwen proclaimed, to more cheers.

Drinking and mocking the republic. Carth wanted to strangle her. Taking a deep breath, and reminding himself he needed a second soldier to help him escape the sith barricade, he watched until the soldiers were smashed enough for him to slip away and grab the papers. He stuck around for a little while after that, the crowds getting wild and couples starting to match up, to head over to Arwen.

"You got enough?" he grouched.

Arwen glanced up at Carth and smiled. She tipped her glass back, finishing the rest in one gulp.

"Sorry boys." She said, getting to her feet. "We have to go penetrate the blockade if you know what I mean." Arwen gave her drunken crowd a wink and there was a series of laughters, geers, and the occasional groan that followed. Arwen waved to them goodbye as she headed out the door with Carth.

"Well, they were certainly eating out of your hand," Carth grouched. He understood that Arwen had really just been using the same humor that was common among soldiers and fighters, but he still disliked that she'd so easily slid among the sith. He slouched along towards the apartment, passing a group of drunks psyching themselves up to go and beat up some poor alien.

"Well it worked didn't it?" Arwen said in a much more sober tone. "I didn't even get a decent buzz off of that thanks to your rule. You should be thanking me for showing some restraint." As she said that, she pulled out a hidden flask and took a big swig of it.

"Something I do not intend to do from now on. I've got three of these." She said proudly, shaking the mostly full flask of Tarisian ale.

Carth looked over at Arwen in surprise. It seemed she was better than he had expected, and more professional than she'd given the impression of being. He sighed. Perhaps, _just_ perhaps, she wasn't as bad as he thought.

He snorted. Unlikely. Carth pulled out a bottle of Tarisian ale he'd snagged for himself, and happily began to drink from it.

Arwen was stumbling slightly by the time they got back to the apartment. She giggled happily to herself as she meandered over to the table. She tossed the empty flask onto the table and pulled out another one. Her fingers had a tough time getting the grip they needed to open the flask. Frustrated, she began to gnaw on the cap. One good twist and a chipped tooth later, and Arwen was drinking again.

"Too... To… Two. Two. Four SIX EIGHT!" Arwen was back to giggling again.

Surprisingly alcohol made Carth rather...relaxed. He laughed at Arwen, and started up an old drinking song.

Arwen began to animatedly sing along. She sung her flask offbeat and seemed to be tapping the table to an entirely different tune. By the time she had finished all of her flasks, she was long gone and passed out.

Last night had been good. He'd definitely enjoyed the ale. The hangover the next day? Not nearly as much.

Carth wasn't sure how much water he chugged down, but his head was cleared enough for them to go. He checked his armor to make sure he looked 'sith' enough to pass inspection. Wearing pieces of the sith armor had his skin crawling, but it was just for the elevator. Then he could take it off.

The first intelligible words out of Arwen's mouth were "Did we make it home?" Her head swayed as she tried to sit up, and failed. It took Arwen a lot longer to get mobile than it took Carth. Her head was pounding and every little sound made her want to tear her ears off. Or punch someone. Either one would have worked.

Arwen somehow managed to grab all her things and follow Carth. She didn't even look at the guard. Her focus was entirely on not puking. The sith guard inspected them, before waving them past into the elevator.

"Good luck finding that jedi," the guard grunted.

The Lower City was...different.

Right from the start the distinction between the two parts of the city were obvious. While there had been poorer parts in the Upper City, it was nothing compared to the poor sections here. People were far rougher. Graffiti covered most of the buildings, and they looked worn down. Perhaps once this place had been nice, but that was a long time ago, and the planet had clearly since moved on.

Carth removed the sith style armor he'd been wearing, replacing it with his more regular armor, when someone came sidling out of an alley.

"Nice armor," the guy said. He smirked, licking his lips. Carth fingered his blaster watching the guy.

"Why don't you hand it over? Hm? Support a good cause. We're going to stop the Beks from taking over this neighborhood, you know."

Arwen pulled out her blaster and shot the guy with barely a glance.

Carth flinched drawing his blaster at the sudden shot. He looked over at Arwen, relaxing as he saw who it was. "Hope that didn't draw attention," Carth muttered. His lips curled in slight distaste. The kill had been quick, almost too sudden. Arwen hadn't even given the guy a chance to back down. It bothered him somewhat.

Arwen gave Carth a hallowed look. She lifted a finger to her lips. "No talking. Hurts."

Carth's lips twitched with amusement. "Need some more painkillers?" he drawled.

"Yes."

Carth opened his mouth to reply, only to be cut off by the sound of more blasters. He drew his blaster this time, the sounds too familiar to a battlefield for him to remain relaxed. Carth peered out, but the fight wasn't out in the open.

At least, it wasn't at first. Someone stumbled out of an alley, clutching at a wound. Another shot hit his head, dropping him dead.

"I vote we move away from the battle," Carth murmured.

Arwen had a grenade in her hand. She had an apathetic look on her face as the man fell to the ground. Her gaze turned back to Carth and she frowned. The hand with the grenade bobbed up and down a few times. She didn't really say anything and only gave a grunt to acknowledge that she had heard him in the first place.

"You wanna brawl while hungover?" Carth pointed out.

Arwen thought about this for a moment longer and finally put her grenade away. "No." She turned around and started walking in a random direction.

The slight tension in Carth's shoulders eased. He hadn't known how unstable Arwen was. Yeah, hangovers were painful, but killing over them? He had been right to distrust her. Why the republic had recruited the mercenary was beyond him. How could they rely on someone like her?

Silently they moved through the Lower City, the sounds of fights occasionally breaking out. The streets were fairly empty, those that were out darting through the streets as quick as they could, afraid of being pulled into the fights. The entire area was a battlezone.

"Ideas on figuring out which gang has the republic survivor?" Carth murmured.

"One of the swoop gangs." she deadpanned.

Right. He'd forgotten she wasn't interested in that. Arwen was only hanging around him because they stood a better chance of surviving and escaping the sith blockade together than apart.

"And ideas on how to get the access codes?" Carth drawled.

Arwen just stared blankly at him. With the way her head was, he was lucky she had enough sense to reply.

Carth sighed. Seemed it was best to just focus on getting to the Cantina. Maybe they'd find someone there who could get the access codes, and someone there would know who had claimed the survivor. He'd be able to get water for Arwen too, help alleviate the headache and hopefully make her functioning enough to pull her weight again.

First though, they'd have to figure out where it was, and survive not being shot. Arwen wasn't the only one with a few local kills by the time they arrived.

Arwen stumbled into the Cantina and headed straight for the bar. "Give me a shot."

The cantina was a far cry from the up scale bar they had been in the previous day. While the bar did boast a dueling arena, and was a hot spot for gambling, the bar was clean and hired reputable bands. Violence in the bar was kept to a minimum, and they had good alcohol

This one on the other hand, had various dirt tracked over it. A waitress could be seen wiping at a table, but the stains on it wouldn't be removed, and she didn't look particularly bothered with it anyway. Every single last patron had a weapon of some kind on them, and there wasn't any music playing, unless one counted the cheap radio that one of the patrons had brought in. Far more aliens were in this bar as well.

In the back was a couple of rodians, making a deal with a rather short man. To make up for his height he was built thickly, and wielded his gun with finesse.

"Davik paid you to deliver. He isn't interested in paying more," the short guy said. His words were rather shortly clipped, giving an odd gait to his sentences.

 _Ah, but now we want more. The Black Vulkars worked hard for this,_ the rodian chattered.

"One," the guy said.

 _What's this? Notice you're outnumbered_ another rodian barked out.

"Two."

 _I think he's counting! What an idiot. Hey, what comes after two?_ The rodians laughed.

"Three." The short guy promptly shot all three rodians dead.

The messy bar didn't phase Arwen a bit. She took her drink in a dirty glass and downed it all the same. Arwen slammed the glass down and was about to ask for another when the sound of weapons fire rang out. Arwen glanced over her shoulder as saw the three dead bodies. She raised an eyebrow at the scene and turned back to the bartender. Arwen slid a couple of extra credits towards him and gestured towards the short man with a quick flick of her head.

"What's goin' on over there?" she asked.

The bartender accepted the money. "New here then? Calo Nord's been hired by the local exchange boss. The Vulkars are supposedly just a branch of the Exchange, they're pretty in debt to the group, unlike the Beks. They've been pushing the line recently though. Guess Davik got tired of it and sent Calo to shut them up."

The bartender paled and fell completely silent, fixing his eyes to the bar as Calo came closer. He only glanced briefly at the bartender before heading out to tend to whatever business he had.

"Sounds like my kind of man." Arwen pushed her glass away and jogged after Calo. 'Hired' was the key word. If her hunch was right, he was probably a mercenary like herself. In that case, they spoke the same language.

"Hey!" Arwen called as caught up with him. "That was quite the show."

He stopped, and glanced at her. "One."

Arwen gave him a cocky grin and stepped in front of him. She pulled out a bag of coin and gave it a little toss before placing it safely behind her back. "Easy my friend. I just want a little chat. One that is good for you and good for me."

He paused. "Thirty seconds."

"I need information for a client of mine. I'm willing to pay for it and a poor memory."

Calo nodded his head to show he was listening. "Twentyfive seconds."

Arwen stopped smiling. "I want information on the captured republic soldiers."

"How much?"

"Depends. Base 100 for the information and another 50 for a lapse in memory. But, I'll increase it depending on how much you've got."

"Deal." Calo accepted the money. "All the republic soldiers are in sith hands, save for the one the Vulkars captured. The soldier is supposedly a high ranking officer, and is one of the prizes to be won in the gang swoop race."

Arwen pulled out the credits that she promised, but kept the bag open and visible. "Where are they being held?"

"The base, for now. Ones they finish with are killed. Seems they only want one in particular. They just haven't found her yet."

She tossed another 15 in his hand. "What about the one the Vulkars have? Where is she being held?"

"They ain't saying. Saw her when the prizes were put up for the swoop race, haven't seen her since. Tight security around it, to keep the gangs from cheating to get the prizes."

Arwen gave him another ten. "Know any way inside the base?"

"That'll cost more."

Arwen passed over twenty more credits.

Calo smirked. "Only way in is to be a sith soldier, or have a droid hacker built."

"Know where I can get a droid hacker?"

"No."

"What about someone who would know?"

Calo frowned. "Time's up. I have other business to take care of." He moved to go around Arwen and leave.

Arwen pocketed her coin bag and watched him go. She had been hoping for some more information, but what he gave her would have to do. Arwen shrugged and made her way back inside. Carth would probably like to know what she had discovered. Hopefully, he was as good at racing as he was in the ring. If not, she might have to arrange a few "accidents."

Carth had watched the exchange uneasily, but Arwen had handled the prickly bounty hunter rather well. He arched a brow as Arwen came back to his side.

"That was rather surprising. What did you have to say that got Calo Nord to actually listen to you?"

"Simple, I used the universal language of mercenaries: money." Arwen replied cheekily. She gave Carth a quick rundown of her discussion with Calo.

"How well do you ride?"

That...was surprisingly useful information. Carth smirked at Arwen's question. "I'm the best pilot the republic has, what do you think?" He ordered a couple drinks, pushing one to Arwen while downing the other.

"Something is finally going right. Cheers!"

Arwen clapped Carth on the shoulder. "Thank you for volunteering." Still probably wouldn't hurt if she arranged a few accidents. All they needed was to get Bastila and they would be golden. The gangs had her from the sound of it.

"Get away from me, creeps!" a young teenager shouted. Carth turned to spot a twi'lek teenager, surprisingly speaking basic rather than the typical twi'lek language. Arwen completely ignored the scuffle between the aliens. They weren't her problem.

 _Little twi'lek talk big game. She should know better,_ a bug alien clicked.

 _Such beautiful skin, she will fetch a good price on the slave market,_ his companion agreed. The twi'lek backed up, heading to a table where a wookie sat.

"Big Z, I could use your help here," the teenager snapped.

 _What? But I just sat down to eat!_ the wookie grumbled.

"Eat after," the twi'lek said sharply. Grumbling the wookie stood up and moved over to stand behind the twi'lek. The slavers backed up.

 _Whoa, we have no problem with wookie. We have problem with you, little girl,_ the bug alien protested.

"You have a problem with me, you have a problem with Big Z, got it?" she said confidently. The aliens paused for a moment, before shrugging and backing off. The girl relaxed, and the wookie headed back to his meal. Carth relaxed as things were resolved, and turned his mind back to his own problems.

Carth quietly set to investigating how to enter the race, only to discover one had to be sponsored by a swoop gang to enter. And what gang would be willing to give up one of the prizes to a sponsored racer? At least it would give them an in, but getting out would be more difficult. He moved back to Arwen's side.

"Hey. It seems I'll need a swoop gang to sponsor me if we're going to get anywhere near the officer. I've looked, and the two major gangs, Hidden Beks and Black Vulkars, seem to be sponsoring the most. Maybe we could convince one of the smaller gangs to hire a racer at the last minute. They'd certainly be more willing to give up one of the prizes, but they might not be as willing to risk it on an outsider."

Carth's information wasn't all that surprising. She sniffed and downed her last glass. "You. Not we. You are the one that needs the sponsor. But don't worry your pretty little head, I'll do my part as promised."

Carth sighed. Every time he thought that he might be getting used to Arwen, she did this, and he had to resist the urge to murder her all over again. "Right. So I guess I'll just convince the...Beks? No one wearing those colors have shot at us at least."

"I can change that." Arwen smirked and pat her pistol.

Carth took a deep breath, keeping himself from punching her. "We're already in one war. We don't need more enemies."

"Yes. Yes. Yes. Fine." Arwen rolled her eyes and dismissed him with a wave of her hand. "Let's just get going shall we? I'm getting bored."

Two is better than one. Two is better than one. Two is better than one, and murder is frowned upon. He would not kill his only ally. Carth looked around, until he spotted someone in the Beks' colors having a drink near the back. There were others there as well, but at least he felt fairly confident in approaching him.

Carth walked up to him, and waited for a pause in the conversation to butt in. "Pardon me, but I heard the Beks were sponsoring racers for the swoop bike race?" he asked. The neimoidian looked over Carth carefully, his eyes moving to trace over Arwen.

"The race is tomorrow, rather late for joining, isn't it?" he asked casually.

"We heard about a rather interesting prize, decided to try our hands at winning it," Carth replied. Arwen wanted to smack him. 'I,' not 'we.' She didn't want to enter the race. Race's weren't her thing. Yet, Carth had said we. Arwen waited and the second the neimoidian looked away, she dug her foot into Carth's toe. The gang member smirked.

"And you think your abilities worth parting with a portion of the prize for the race?" Carth grinned.

"I will win that race for whoever backs me." The neimoidian looked at the pilot with renewed interest.

"Perhaps our leader will be interested in hearing what you have to say. He's down near the southern apartments, the brick warehouse. If you can manage to reach him, I'm sure he'll be interested in hearing what you have to say."

"Great, thanks." Arwen said and gave the alien a wave that was too quick to be polite. "Let's get out of here before you volunteer me for something else." She hissed, glaring daggers at Carth. If looks could kill.

Carth looked at her in confusion. "What are you talking about? You got some hidden pilot talents you haven't shared with the class?"

"You said 'We.' 'Try our hands at winning.' As in you and me." She accused.

"You expect me to rely on our oh so gracious sponsors for aid?" Carth demanded.

"Yes, actually. That and my dishonesty. We can't exactly rely on your skills completely if you are going to win that race."

Carth bristled sharply. He looked coldly at his companion. "Care to say that again?" His voice was surprisingly calm despite his clear fury.

"Sure Mister Soldier." Arwen squared off and out her face only inches from his. "I'll say it nice and slow. You. Will need. My. Help. Does that bother you? Is your honorable soldier pride injured by my dishonest mercenary ways? Should I call momma commander to kiss it and make it better?"

That's it. He swung at the merc as hard as he could.

The blow stuck home. Arwen held her jaw as she righted her head. She massaged it for a moment, stretched it back and forth. Arwen smiled and spat a wad of blood at Carth's face and followed it up with a punch towards his gut.

Carth winced as the blood hit his cheek, disgusted by it. It was a good thing he was prepared for her blow, or he would have been winded hard. As it is Carth got nailed in the arm. He barely managed to shake off the pain for a sloppy punch to her face, trying to hide the second punch to her stomach.

Arwen sidestepped his first punch and was well out of the range of his second. She had her arms up, but swept a hard kick towards his legs instead.

Carth winced as the blow hit him, but absorbed it well and leaped forward to punch her again, this time rapidly following up with a jab to her kidneys.

Arwen deflected the first blow. Arwen didn't even see the second strike, yet she knew it was coming. Suddenly, it was as if Carth had become a perfectly open book. No, the whole cantina was. Arwen knew what everyone was going to do moments before they did it. She balked but then surged forward, trying to clap her hands on his shoulders so that she could yank him towards her rapidly rising knee.

He knew Arwen was a good fighter. It was what had allowed her to survive when so many on the Endar Spire died. It was why the republic had bothered to recruit a mercenary like her into the army in the first place. It was why he had chosen to put up with how grating she was despite his desire to ditch her and try to make it on his own.

None of that prepared him for just how fast she suddenly moved. If she'd been good before, she was now amazing. He had thought only jedi could move that fast. As it was he barely managed to grab her leg and start twisting it to the side, and he still absorbed a lot of the blow to his chest.

If he wanted to go down, they could go down. Arwen threw herself at Carth, grappling him as she brought her elbow down, intending to smash his head and maybe his nose if she hit him hard enough and it went into her raised leg.

Carth turned his head making the blow hit the side of his head, and brought up a fist to try and slam her in the gut as they rolled on the ground.

She saw it coming. She couldn't avoid it, not with the way the tight grabble they were in. So, instead, she hit back. Anything was a target. Anything was fair game. She just had to hit it.

For a while they just rolled back and forth, slugging at each other. Carth had to give it to her, she hit hard. He wasn't a veteran of the Mandalorian wars for nothing though. He kept going despite how much her blows hurt, hitting back wherever he could.

Both of them were getting battered. Frustrated, Arwen grabbed Carth's arm the next time he swung at her. She moved with almost impossible speed, wrenching his arm out straight and trapping it between her arms as she locked his head and other arm with her legs. Arwen pulled back, tightening the lock and hyper extending Carth's muscles. He wasn't going anywhere.

His muscles stung as she swung him into a lock he couldn't escape. Red in the face he cursed as loudly as he could, covering everything from what he thought of her mother to his opinions on her personal habits. Eventually however, he had to give up. She had him good, and nothing he tried was going to change that. Slumping he stared furiously at the ground.

Arwen just rolled her eyes and let him rage. She'd heard worse. Heck, she'd said worse about her mother. Finally, she felt him relax and Arwen released him.

The sensation was gone. That strange feeling of knowing without seeing. Arwen stumbled to her feet and stretched. Her mind went back to that feeling and she tried to call it again. Nothing. Just her normal self. Arwen's gaze was distant as she wondered what that was about. Maybe it was just her imagination, the adrenaline and the heat of the brawl getting to her head. Or she was going crazy. Scratch that, she already went crazy long ago so that was out.

"Tomorrow is gonna hurt," she mumbled to herself and stretched again. There was a sharp pain in her side and she wondered if she had cracked a rib.

Painfully he got up. Carth sighed. He shouldn't have let his temper get the better of him. They needed to find the other republic soldiers and work on escaping the sith controlled planet as soon as possible. His hopes to find Bastila were still there, as news of the death of a jedi would have been all over the planet. He just didn't know where to start. This swoop race was their best lead.

He spat some blood from his mouth onto the ground, and looked at Arwen. He sighed. "Let's just...get this over with," he grumbled.

"After you." Arwen was tempted to add 'Princess' but she didn't feel like getting any more snot beaten out of her. Carth, for as insufferable as he was, could hit well enough. Maybe even alright if she was going to be halfway honest with herself.


	4. Swoop Bike Racing

Fighting each other had truly been stupid. Sure, it had let them show each other exactly what they thought of each other, and it had certainly made Carth feel better to see where there would be bruises on the mercenary from where he'd smacked her, but it had also left the pair injured when they couldn't afford to be.

The southern apartments were a full out war zone. Fights broke out several times, and Arwen and Carth both killed to help secure their passage through. If they had been beat before, they were dragging by the time they reached the warehouse. The guards there looked over the pair, impressed by their prowess.

"A talented pair of outsiders. Not everyday you see a beatdown like that," one guard remarked, "What brings you here?"

"Hoping to get sponsored for the swoop race, in exchange for part of the prize," Carth said. The guard smirked.

"Good luck on that." He opened the door, letting them in.

The warehouse was busy, gang members going over their bikes and working on them, prepping weapons, a couple men barking out orders and discussing plans. An icy twilek stood watching over them all, a man seated behind her working.

Carth slowly approached the twilek. She looked at them haughtily. "What business do you have with the Hidden Beks, strangers?" she barked.

"We're interested in sponsorship for the race," Carth repeated yet again. The twilek sneered.

"And why should we give that to you?"

"I'm the best pilot this side of the galaxy. You'll be lucky to have me. And my companion has liquid luck in her veins."

Arwen gave them a cocky, if weary smile. "You'll lose without him and you'll lose against him." She let the implied threat hang in the air and do most of her talking for her.

The twilek tensed. "You think you can threaten us?" She moved to draw her blaster, only to be stopped by the man behind her.

"Zaerda, peace."

"But Gadon, they're mocking us!" the twilek growled.

The man looked up, revealing his empty gaze. He was blind. "They're simply looking for an opportunity to enter the swoop race. Consider this an...opportunity." The twilek looked down.

"Yes Gadon." She glared at the pair. "Make one wrong move, and I'll gut both of you." She stepped aside to let them get closer to her leader.

"What interests you about the swoop race? It really only holds meaning for the inhabitants of the Lower City. While interesting, I doubt it's why you're so set on entering."

"The usual suspects, money and glory." Arwen replied without missing a beat. It wasn't exactly a lie. She loved money and all soldiers desired glory. If Carth became the single resistance fighter to save his beloved commander then he would be showered in it.

"You can get that in the dueling ring," Gadon pointed out dryly.

"We're actually interested in what we heard about the prizes this year. Something about a captured republic officer?" Carth asked. Gadon smiled.

"I see. Well, seems we can sponsor you after all. There's just one small favor you'll have to do for us first."

Of course they wanted a favor. No one did anything out of the kindness of their hearts except fools and the recently dead.

"And what would that be?"

"We had a new engine for the swoop race. Guaranteed to give us a winner. Unfortunately, someone got a little too drunk and blabbed. The Vulkars snatched it. If you get it back for us, we'll lend you the engine for your own bike."

"Done." Arwen clapped her hand on Carth's shoulder. "Let's go murder people." Less competition that way too.

Arwen started to walk off but stopped. She glanced back at their employers and discreetly asked. "Your blabbing drunk? Need someone to… take care of him?"

Gadon chuckled. "Already taken care of. Oh...and I suggest you take the back door into the Vulkars' base. It's down in the Under City."

"Of course." Arwen nodded. She headed out the door first and gave a little sigh. Just one more thing to add to her increasingly long list. This job was such a headache. A part of her just wanted to blab everything to the sith and be done with it.

They had to fight again through the gangs to reach the place going to the Under City. Carth really wished they could take a break, even if it was only for an hour or so. Some of his cuts had started bleeding again. As shallow as they were it hurt. Still, they had to keep pushing on. The swoop race was tomorrow. They only had one day to get the engine before it was too late.

The Under City. The Lower City could be considered the slums. The Under City was a wasteland. Built underneath the crust of the city there wasn't even a sky for them to look up to, just the thick pollution pumped below and the weight of the city above. There was no escaping the Under City for those born there. If they were lucky, they might live to thirty before their bodies gave out and died.

It didn't stop this one girl from approaching them. She looked like she was almost thirty, but the way she spoke and acted revealed that she was truly only a teenager, simply aged beyond her years. There was still hope in her voice that had not yet been beaten down, asking what the sky was like. Arwen let Carth did with the kid. She wasn't interested in trying to handle that kind of creature. Besides, she'd just dissillusion the girl and that would have gotten them nowhere. At least Carth was able to get some information out of her. Apparently just beyond the small fenced village was the sewer system that linked up to the Lower City. None of them risked it, as rakghoul disease was rampant down here, and without the vaccine leaving it was the same as dying. Carth looked a little sick at the thought.

They reached the gate, only to witness the desperate screams of a woman begging the guard to raise the gate so her husband could get in before the rakghouls caught him and killed him right before her eyes. Arwen sighed and shook her head. She pulled her pistol out and steadied it with her other arm. Arwen took a careful breath, aiming her shot from the distance. She fired and it struck the guard. Smiling Arwen strode towards the gate and set to work to raising it. Rakghouls weren't exactly a threat to her thank to the resistance and their vaccines.

"Carth, grab the body and toss it in. We can let the ghouls take care of it."

Carth stared in shock as Arwen casually killed the guard at the gate and began raising it. The woman screamed and ran, alerting the others scattered throughout the pathetic village.

"How...how could you do that?" Carth snapped in shock.

"What? He was in the way." Arwen rolled her eyes. "Oh, come on. You don't really think he'd just let us walk through this gate. And even if he did, there is nothing stopping him from telling his bosses we are on our way. Besides, there's more where he came from."

"What bosses?! His job was to keep the rakghouls from killing the people who lived down here. He's not a gang member!" Carth exclaimed. "Oh. Oops. Still, more where he came from." Arwen shrugged and started off. He trailed after Arwen, watching reluctantly as they left the village. A couple rakghouls had broken past him and Arwen and were causing chaos. He stopped.

"Would you be fine going ahead without me?"

She looked at him and then at the ghouls. They didn't really have time for this. Arwen heaved a sigh. "It will be quicker if we both do it." She shut the gate to make sure no more got in while they were cleaning up the filth.

Carth sighed, and nodded. He drew out his blasters and quickly shot at one of the rakghouls. Unfortunately they were tough creatures, and didn't immediately die. It took quite a few shots before the blasted creature finally fell down, and stayed down.

With Arwen's help killing them off was faster. They left the village, Carth hoping Arwen's actions hadn't created too much damage, and headed for the sewers. Carth paused, as he caught sight of an escape pod.

"Isn't that from the Endar Spire?"

"Looks like." Arwen stepped up to it for a better look. "Hey, how many rakghouls does it take to open an escape pod?"

"Too few." Carth stepped up, his stomach rolling at the sight of a chewed up soldier. Seemed the man had survived the ship being destroyed, only to land here and get torn apart. "Enough for dinner." Arwen chuckled. "Judging by his sorry state." Shaking his head Carth dug around in the pod, grabbing a couple extra ammo cases, before they continued on.

They had barely cracked open the sewers when a blue twilek shot towards them, the same teenager from the cantina that had been with the wookie. She stopped in front of them, and looked at their weapons.

"Hey, you guys open for accepting any jobs?" she asked.

"Always." The word came out of her mouth before she could stop herself. It was habit. However, she really didn't want to get side tracked, again. They needed that engine. Arwen cursed. But she couldn't take it back. Not after accepting. She had a reputation to uphold.

"Great. There's gamorrean slavers in the sewers. They managed to get my partner. If you can get him loose I'll help you out. I'm the best stealth op in the Lower City after all."

Well, that was convenient. "Deal." Arwen pulled out her blaster and smiled. "Lead the way, my sneaky friend."

The teenager grinned broadly at them, and waved for them to follow her. Carth brought up the rear, making sure no rakghouls could get them from behind. The teen stopped as they came to an area full of gamorreans. It was obvious why despite the teen's skills she hadn't been able to get through. The room was thick with them, there was no way to sneak past them.

"I've tried scouting out other routes, but this is the only pipe that leads to the room Big Z is kept in," the twilek explained quietly.

"How sturdy do you think the pipe is?" Arwen asked, already reaching for her grenades.

"Sturdy enough to play host to a rancor," she answered. Carth did a double take at that.

"Did you say a _rancor_ is living down here?"

"Yeah. The Vulkars use it to hide their back door," she blithely replied.

"Crikey," Carth muttered.

"I think a rancor is the least of their worries right now." The smile on Arwen's face was pure maniacal glee. She pulled the pin and grinned wildly at the pair. "It's a frag anyways."

Arwen tossed the grenade, letting it roll into the middle of the group where it violently exploded.

Carth and the twilek barely had the chance to duck away from the explosion. The slavers had no chance. The ones that did survive were screaming, either disoriented or in pain from losing parts of their bodies. Carth easily leaned around the corner to snipe the survivors. The blue teenager looked around the corner, grinning widely.

"Yeah! That showed 'em!" she cheered. Crossing the room she paused briefly to kick at one of the dead buddies. "You don't cross Mission and get away with it," she jeered. She opened the door, revealing a heavily sedated wookie in chains.

"Big Z! I'm here for ya, buddy!" Mission declared. The twilek clambered over and began to undo the chains. She looked around, and groaned when she saw the syringe that had been used. "Aw man, nylocks? That'll take forever to wear off." The wookie woozily slumped to the ground.

"At least the slavers are dead," Mission grumbled. She looked over at the pair she'd hired. "Thanks. How do you want me to repay you?"

"A skills exchange." Arwen said over her shoulder. She was already looting the corpses for money, booze, ammo, and anything else that caught her eye. "The Vulkars have a present for us and we've decided to go pick it up. Trouble is, they don't know that they are giving us a present. Yet. Think your skills are good enough help retrieve our package?"

Mission smirked. "Course they are. Just tell me what I'm picking up."

"Oh, nothing too big. Just a swoop engine."

Mission arched a brow. "Ya want me to steal from some mechanics shop? Or ya got something a little more special in mind?"

Arwen grinned. "It wouldn't be fun if it wasn't. Our package is with the Vulkars." _And while she steals it, I can put some odds into our favor._

The teenager lit up. "From the Vulkars, huh? That'll be fun. Ya want me to sabotage their bikes or somethin'?" The wookie groaned, beginning to stir. In a flash Mission was back at his side.

"Hey Big Z. You ready to get going?" Mission asked softly.

 _Mission? The slavers…_

"Don't worry 'bout that. I got your back." The wookie nodded and slowly stood up. He stiffened as he noticed Carth and Arwen.

 _What do you want?_ he growled.

"Easy, Big Z! They helped me get you out of here!" Mission laughed. The wookie nodded, still uneasy. Mission flashed a smile at the two soldiers.

"Tell ya what, you can pick. We need the engine but I was also planning on messing the bikes up a bit. Whichever one you don't do, we will."

Arwen didn't even give the wookie the time of day. He didn't look very old and neither did his companion. As far as she was concerned, unless they proved to be useful they weren't worth her time or attention.

The wookie glanced at Mission. _You're messing with the Vulkars?_

"Payment for getting you loose." Mission hummed to herself. "We'll take the engine. Big Z is strong enough to carry it easy. Anything special we need to know about the engine? Is it a certain type? Know where it's stored? Anything like that?"

Arwen quickly caught the teenager up with everything they knew about the engine. When she was done she glanced at Carth. "Why don't you go with them. I'll be fine on my own with the bikes."

Carth frowned. "I'd rather stick with you."

"Yes, but I don't need your help. They do." Arwen shot back.

Carth looked at the pair. They were rather young… Groaning Carth conceded the point. He wasn't particularly happy that Arwen would be out of his reach for a time, especially with her tendency to do rather questionable things, but it was best they had someone older with them. "Fine."

"Great," Mission chirped, "So do you know about the back door, or do you need my help getting there?"

"We know the backdoor exists, but help would make getting there a lot faster." Arwen gestured for them to lead the way.

Mission cheerfully skipped ahead of them, Zaalbar grumbling and shuffling behind her. They made their ways through the tunnels fairly easily until Mission stopped in front of a door. She shuffled a little nervously, indicating to an arm holding a datapad.

"I usually have no problems getting through since I just use my stealth generator, but, well...that's the remains of the last guy who tried to get past the rancor to get into the base."

Arwen followed after the teens and was about to yell at them for stopping when Mission explained herself. Arwen raised an eyebrow.

"A rancor? Seriously." She looked down at her belt. "I've only got one grenade left." She sighed. Well, at least her blaster and knife would get a workout. Arwen looked to Carth with a hopeful expression. "I don't suppose you've got a different plan?"

Carth stared at the door, a little pale. He had dealt with rancors before, but that was usually with a team. The blasted beasts were almost impossible to take down, impervious to most guns. A good jedi could usually take them down without too much effort. He wished Bastila was with them. Then again, if she was they wouldn't need to go through this whole song and dance with the swoop gangs in the first place. Sighing he looked at Arwen.

"I could probably run distraction. I've got a couple mines, if Mission can sneak in and plant them I can lure it over. It'll hurt though." He grimaced at the thought. One wrong move, and he'd either be dealing with burns or being sliced open by the rancor.

Well, it was a plan. Hers, while more dangerous, would yield better results if she could pull it off. Rancors had tough skin and were impervious to guns. On the outside. On the inside, not so much.

"Ok. New plan. You lot run distraction. Pin or injure the arms if you can. I'll get behind and on top of it," Arwen waved her hand with the grenade, "and give it a little snack."

Carth stared at her as if the mercenary was insane. Not an entirely new look for him, as he often looked like he was one step away from either running or strangling her. Mission on the other hand, looked like she had found a new idol to devote herself to, eyes glistening with admiration.

"Alright!" Mission crowed.

"Is that even possible?" Carth demanded. Sure, feeding the grenade to the rancor made it much more likely it would die than Carth's plan, but Arwen climbing it and sticking her hand that close to its mouth? Insane!

"Let's find out." Arwen said. The look the kid was giving her had put Arwen into a good mood. "After you." She gestured towards Carth.

Grumbling Carth drew his blaster. It wouldn't do anything to the rancor, but it made him feel safer holding it, more prepared. He opened the door as quietly as he could, wincing at the slight squeaking. The large rancor slowly lifted its head, sniffing at the air. Drool dripped from its mouth as it searched for prey.

"This is so stupid," Carth muttered. He couldn't believe the plan was to draw its attention. Taking a deep breath he entered, and fired into the air. The rancor focused on the small human, and charged. Desperately Carth began to run for his life.

Arwen waited. She belted the grenade. Patiently, she listened and watched. Once the rancor was completely focused on Carth she raced forward. The rancor charged at Carth and Arwen went in the opposite direction, clinging to the wall as she rounded the rancor's other side. Arwen slid to a halt before dashing up the rancors back. Her hands shot out and grabbed hold of the back spike. The rancor's armored skin was tough as rocks with lots of small bumps and ridges. Perfect for gripping. Pulling herself up, Arwen started to climb.

Thank goodness Arwen's grip on the rancor got its attention. Carth barely managed to pull back from the beast, breath knocked out but skin thankfully intact, before it reared up, twisting and turning as it tried to get to the nuisance on its back.

"Oi! Over here!" Carth hollered. He shot at the beast's eyes, missing but definitely getting its attention back.

Arwen flattened herself against the rancor, trying desperately to avoid the massive claws. Carth had her back and got the rancor's attention again. Grunting, she pulled herself up and onto its shoulders. Arwen unclipped her grenade and pulled the pin.

"Open wide." Arwen shoved her hand into the rancor's mouth, just at the edge where the lips meet. There was a gap in teeth at the back of the jaw that her arm safely slipped through. She quickly deposited the grenade into its throat. Arwen yanked her arm back and tumbled off the rancor. The ground came up fast and she landed hard, badly rolling to safety.

 _3… 2… 1…_

The rancor roared furiously chasing after the two humans as they shot out of there. Carth had just barely reached the edge of the room before the rancor...exploded really was the best word for what happened. It swelled up, and bits of flesh flew out of its mouth. It flailed for a short time after, but quickly fell completely still. Gasping Carth glared at it.

"Finally," he heaved. The struggle had been shorter than it had felt, but intense enough to drain the soldier from the constant dodging. It would take a couple minutes for him to be ready to move on.

"Alright!" Mission cheered, "That was amazing!" Zaalbar growled his agreement, grinning broadly.

Arwen stood on shaky legs. She panted hard, half smiling and half wincing as the rancor's intestines exploded. The excess flailing was a little fun to watch, but the pain in her legs and sides were distracting. Her right ankle particularly hurt. Arwen hissed as she put some weight on it. It probably wasn't broken, but she absolutely hyper-extended it. Plus there was a fresh bruise on her hip. Although, it might be lost among the myriad that Carth had already given her.

Limping slightly, Arwen pulled away from the wall. "Let's just get this over with."

The group headed towards the door leading into the Vulkars base, the teens the only ones that looked completely fresh. Again, Carth had to regret losing his temper. He had known they still had a while to go before they were able to stop, and injuring himself and his ally while in hostile territory had been a stupid move. He still dragged himself up the ladder, crouching quietly in the base. The teenage twilek moved surprisingly silently, almost invisible with just the faintest shimmer to show the activated stealth generator. The wookie was just as silent as he came up.

"We'll split up here. Meet back in a couple hours, or if an alert is sent off?" Carth suggested.

"Can do." Arwen waved. In truth, if someone raised an alarm she would leave the group without so much as a glance back. But they didn't need to know that.

Arwen had to move carefully, even more so than usual. Her ankle was throbbing and every step hurt like there was no tomorrow. The only saving grace she had was that the ankle was at least still usable. If she had to book it, she could. It would royally suck though.

Arwen pushed forward. Her steps were light as she traveled through the maze like halls. She kept a mental map of the place, keeping track of every turn so she could find her way back. The echo of feet sounded and Arwen froze. Her head swiveled rapidly. She spotted and door and rushed over. Arwen tried the handle. Unlocked. The steps were getting closer. Arwen forced herself to stay calm. If she panicked she could end up running head first into trouble.

Ten more seconds. Arwen slid the door open and peeked inside. A utility closet. Seven seconds. She slipped inside. Three. The door clicked and she was in darkness. Arwen pressed her ear to the door and listened, trying to ignore the pungent smell. It smelled like a rancor had died and was left to rot.

A pair of steps traveled past. Muffled voices spoke to one another in a heated conversation. Their words were lost through the door. For a second they stopped and Arwen's heart halted. They started again. Arwen waited, counting in her head. Ten seconds. Twenty seconds. Thirty seconds. Finally, she pushed the door open. She breathed deep, enjoying the breath of fresh air after the putrid closet.

It took a lot longer to find the garage than Arwen would ever admit. When she finally did find it, there were a couple riders inside. Arwen snuck inside and hid behind one of the larger vehicles. She had to wait nearly twenty minutes for them to finally leave. By that time, Arwen had heard enough about the gang member's love life that the closet seemed downright pleasant in comparison.

Once she was alone, Arwen pulled herself out of her hiding spot. She cracked her back and stretched her sore limbs. They had started to stiffen and moving was difficult and painful. With a grunt, Arwen headed to the first bike. She worked quickly and carefully. She tried to give each bike a different problem.

One ended up with a little hole in the fuel line. Now how did that happen? Another, some of the screws became dangerously loose. If the rider went to fast they might just find themselves without half their engine. Engineers should have never let the bottom be so exposed. Something bad might happen. One of the bikes ended up with a disconected brake line. They didn't need that. Races were all about speed. So what if they couldn't slow down or stop?

Arwen passed over as many of the bikes as she could. Laugher caught her attention and she had to abandon the last couple of swoops. Hopefully she had done enough. Most of the issues she caused would take a little while to find or wouldn't be noticeable unless the bike was put under more extreme conditions, like a swoop race.

Getting back to the rendezvous point was a lot easier. She ducked into empty rooms and closets when she had too, or double back to avoid wandering gang members. Arwen settled down in the shadows and waited for the rest of her group to arrive.

It hadn't been easy finding the engine. They had ended up in a small workshop, probably where the bikes were fixed. The engine had been half inserted into a bike, the machine practically rewired to accommodate the experimental engine. It had taken them almost an hour to pry it out without damaging it, and it was a good thing that Zaalbar was there or it would have been far more difficult to get it back to the sewers. Carth relaxed as he saw Arwen was actually there waiting for them.

"Got the engine," he whispered.

"Got your luck." Arwen replied. "Let's get out of here." Arwen slipped down the ladder first. She dropped onto the ground and gave the dead rancor a passing glance. "Think any of it is salvageable?" Arwen wasn't really considering anything, but her inner merc and money slime couldn't help themselves.

Just a little bit longer, and they'd be able to separate. A little bit longer, and Carth could drink away the memories of having ever met someone named Arwen. Mission looked over the rancor considering.

"Dunno," she answered, "Was never interested in that, just in getting past it."

They moved as quickly as they dared through the sewers back to the surface. Carth had to take down a couple more rakghouls, and it took some...persuading...to get the village to let them in again after the incident with the rakghouls at the start, but they got back to the surface and returned to the Beks base.

"Success, I see," Gadon said, "We'll set up the engine, and we'll see you in the race tomorrow."

Arwen stretched as she exited the Bek's base. "Well, I need a stiff drink and a good shag. You in?"

Carth rolled his eyes. "Go ahead. I need to rest up for the race tomorrow."

"I'll come!" Mission exclaimed. Carth grabbed the girl before she could follow Arwen. "Why don't you and...Big Z? Stick with me."

"Leggo! I'm not a kid!" the twilek complained.

"Ahaha, no." Arwen jammed her thumb in Carth's direction. "For once we agree. Kids stay home and be nice to daddy. Mommy needs some debauchery." Arwen waved at the trio and started towards the nearest bar.

Carth headed to the Upper City, Mission practically glowing with excitement when she realized she now had access to a place she'd never been able to slip into before. She did look a little disappointed that the place they entered wasn't as fancy as she'd expected, but with the race tomorrow Carth didn't have time to babysit an overeager kid from the slums.


	5. Impossible

In the bar a scarred mandalorian sat drinking. He straightened as Arwen entered, watching the mercenary closely.

Arwen massaged her injured arm as she stepped up to the bar. She threw a few credits down and waved to get the bartender's attention. "I'll take a glass of whatever will make me forget the fastest."

The mandalorian chuckled and moved over to sit near her. "Interesting day?" he asked.

The bartender took her money and passed her a drink. She took the glass and swirled the azure liquid a few times. Arwen took a gulp and smacked her lips. She gave the old man who joined her a quick once over and took another drink. "Aren't they all?"

The mandalorian snorted. "You could say that." He studied her closely. "You're working with that pilot, right?"

"Nope." She replied without missing a beat or batting an eye.

"Shame." He finished his drink and waved another down.

Arwen glanced sidelong at the man. His armor labeled him as a mandalorian and his age said he was either a coward or a good one. Arwen would bet on the latter judging from the number of scars he sported. She put her glass down and ran her finger along the top.

"Just out of curiosity, why do you ask?"

He chuckled. "Just had something I wanted to talk to him about. None of your business if you ain't with him, girl."

"Really now?" Arwen leaned against the bar and studied the man harder. "I might know where you can find them. I could, hypothetically speaking, try to set up a meet."

Canderous chuckled. The girl had spunk. "Hypothetically then, I might know where to get a ship fast enough to run the blockade."

Arwen bolted upright. A rookie mistake. She cleared her throat but her interest was already obvious. "They are gonna need proof. I can't just offer them a meet without something to show for it."

Smart girl. She would have been a worthy opponent in the war. He eyed her. Perhaps she had been in the war. A shame he hadn't been the one to fight her in that case. He would have enjoyed that battle.

"I'm only interested in meeting with this pilot if he proves he can manage it. No ordinary pilot would be able to run the blockade. If he proves himself in the swoop race tomorrow, I'll give him the proof he requires."

"Sounds reasonable." Arwen relaxed a little. "Alright. I'll arrange a meet for you after race. For a small fee of course." She rubbed her fingers together and grinned.

Canderous laughed loudly. He waved at the bartender. "Another round for my friend here! On me." He smirked at the mercenary. "You've got guts, trying t'get me to pay. I'll see your pilot friend tomorrow." Finishing his drink he left.

"Nothing comes for free. You should know that." Arwen downed her drink and took the second one with a happy nod toward her new business associate. She greedily downed the free booze and set out to find herself some company for the night.

The small group headed to where the race was gonna be held, Mission pulling Zaalbar along to get good seats while Carth headed down to where the racers were setting up. The prizes were visible, bags of money, some nice guns and tech, and a cage with a female republic officer in it. The 'track' wasn't one, so much as a no bars held race through the streets, the path carefully monitored by zealous gang members eager to shoot out any potential cheaters.

"Welcome to the Annual Race!" an announcer shouted. "Our racers are ready, the winner bringing honor to their gang, prizes, and the disputed territory for the year!" The crowd roared their approval, Mission and Zaalbar right in there with them.

Carth crouched over his bike. He was a good pilot, one of the best, but that didn't mean he thought this would be easy. He hadn't dedicated himself to learning how to race swoop bikes like some of the racers, and he wasn't sure what to expect of the experimental engine they'd saddled him with. The fact the Beks had given it to him instead of one of their own just made the instability of it even clearer.

The gun went off, and the race started. The bike leapt beneath him, a powerful surge pushing him towards the front of the group. Carth clenched tight to the handles, quickly adapting to the delicate handling needed to keep it from swerving too far and crashing. Trash that hadn't entirely been cleared from the streets played out as obstacles, while bikes jockeyed for position. It didn't take long for the first wipe out to happen, a couple of racers slamming into each other and skidding out of control. Carth barely dodged it before the other bikes behind him began twisting around the narrows.

The bike bucked beneath him. Carth held on tightly as a sudden speed boost was spat out, the engine revving up unexpectedly before again settling down. He'd have to watch for that. An explosion almost caused him to wipe out, as a racer's bike unexpectedly gave out and exploded under the racer. Hopefully that was because of Arwen's sabotage, and not because they were using an unstable engine. He'd rather not think of the chances that he was sitting on a time bomb.

One by one various racers dropped out, either from having problems with their bikes, to being taken out by fellow racers, to simply being unable to handle the tough terrain. The swoop bike bucked twice more in the race, each time sending him further ahead, but threatening to completely unseat him. He wasn't too happy to be able to feel the increasing heat under his seat either.

Carth managed to pull into a win, having just barely slammed the other contestant out of the way, before he was leaping off the bike in time for it to catch on fire. He ducked and rolled away, leaving the mechanics to spray it and cool it off.

"This year's champion, Carth Venruk of the Hidden Beks!" The crowd went wild. Carth grinned as he stepped forward to accept his portion of the prize, the republic officer they'd fought for.

One of the Black Vulkars nodded, and suddenly guns were pulled. Carth froze.

"Now, that's mighty fine and all," the gang member drawled, "Good job on the race. But you won't be getting the Vulkars portion of the prize, nosirree." Calmly Goran, the Bek's leader, walked forward.

"And why's that?" he asked coolly.

"Cause I'm calling sabotage. Ya think I didn't recognize that engine, Goran? That I wouldn't notice all the little problems my racers had? We've been sabotaged!" Goran paled, and drew his own gun.

"That was our engine, you piece of slime! And if you don't know how to care for your own bikes, that's your own fault!" Carth tensed, grabbing his own set of blasters. Both sides stood frozen, only to be surprised at a sudden movement from the prizes. The female officer stepped out, cool as anything. Carth grinned as he recognized Bastila. Seemed the jedi had managed to avoid sith capture after all!

She opened her hand, dropping the neural disruptors that had kept her from being able to think clearly enough to escape.

"I'm not anyone's prize," she spoke coolly. Both gangs turned on her, and the battle began.

Arwen woke up early. She didn't bother taking a good look at her bed fellow. Or rather, she didn't want too. Arwen had learned years ago not to check her company in the morning. She really didn't want to know. So, instead, she took what she could find in the ramshackled little abode and left. Arwen nursed her headache and resupplied before the race. Granted, the screaming still sucked, but it could have been worse. Arwen was even starting to enjoy herself by the end. Then the inevitable fight broke out and Arwen eagerly jumped into the fray.

One blaster and a grenade were out. She tossed the bomb into the crowd, whooping as people scattered in an attempt to get away. The grenade went off and bodies went flying. Arwen pulled her pistol out and began to fire and murder her way through the crowd towards Carth.

"Yeah!" Mission excitedly followed Arwen's lead, drawing her own blaster and setting to work. Zaalbar grumbled behind her as he drew his sword and worked to keep the crowd at a distance as they followed down to where Carth and the officer they'd come to rescue fought.

Carth was not so happy with the chaos. A quick draw had him shooting as many of the gang members as he could, but staying here was only asking to die. There were too many for such a small group to take out. He barely noticed Arwen's addition to the brawl as he moved to Bastila's side.

"Jedi Knight Bastila? Commander Carth Onasi. Here to help get you out of here." The jedi glanced at the pilot and nodded sharply. Together they worked towards the edge of the crowd. It was a relief to work with a professional. He could rely on her to do what was sensible, rather than what would cause the greatest disaster. Despite his dislike for the jedi after the disaster of the Mandalorian Wars he had to admit she could fight well enough. Too bad jedi rarely fought unless forced to.

Arwen fought her way towards Carth. A huge grin was spread across her face as she blasted and punched anyone who came to close. She finally managed to draw up to Carth as saw that he had rejoined his beloved Jedi.

"Hate to interrupt your steamy romance, but we have an appointment that we can't be late for. Time to cut off the fun."

The jedi gave an icy stare to Arwen. She shook her head and glanced about. "We should leave before we're forced to kill anymore," Bastila confirmed. Carth glanced behind Arwen and groaned at seeing Mission and Zaalbar fighting the gangs.

"I see the kids managed to get into trouble." Bastila wrinkled her nose, confused. Carth shouldered his way back towards them, and helped them catch up with the rest of the group. A few minutes later they were clear of the all out brawl, citizens who weren't initially at the race running to join in and using the fight as an excuse to take out people they disliked.

"We better get to the apartment before the sith soldiers arrive and just start killing everyone," Carth muttered. Looked like they might have started a riot. Hopefully they wouldn't get caught in it. Bastila swept ahead, scanning for threats and taking point. Carth automatically fell behind to her guard, guns drawn and ready. They moved fairly swiftly through the streets to the elevator.

"What's going on?" the sith guard demanded.

"Riot's started. We're heading for reinforcements," Carth lied. The sith guard cursed, and grabbing his partner ran to try and contain the riot before it got worse. Slipping in they reached the Upper City, and made it to the sanctuary of their apartment.

"Alright. Ready to leave this planet?" Bastila asked.

"We don't have a way off yet," Carth explained.

"I see. Well, now that the proper chain of command has been restored, I'm sure we'll be leaving soon." Carth frowned.

"Excuse me for working to save your sorry self from being sold off as a slave."

"Oh, was that supposed to be a rescue? It was a poorly executed one if it was. I got myself out of there." And there it was. The reminder why he disliked working with jedi. Carth scowled.

"Excuse me, princess, but jedi or not you wouldn't have gotten out of there without our help."

"Oh just bone already!" Arwen exclaimed, exasperated. If they were going to do this the whole trip, she was going to throw both of them out airlock the first chance she got. Bastila stared at Arwen in shock. How dare she imply that a jedi would engage in such base behavior? Mission giggled, Zaalbar looking over the small twilek to make sure her wounds weren't too bad.

"You. Kids. Take the robed idiot somewhere safe and preferably where no one can see or hear her. I'll take this idiot and get us a ride." She grabbed Carth roughly by his clothes and began to drag him away from the impending fight. "You two can shag once we are off this rock."

Bastila straightened. "Who are you to take charge?"

Unfortunately she was too slow to ask. She looked at the teenagers she was left with, unsure exactly how to behave around them. Mission smirked. This promised to be amusing.

* * *

"Whoa, whoa!" Carth cried as Arwen dragged him off. "What ride? What are you talking about?"

"What? Do you think I was off all night drinking and shagging?" Arwen paused. "Don't answer that. Point is, I found someone who says they have a ship for us. I figured, either they are telling the truth and we can get out of this hellhole, or they are lying and we had better find out why."

"A ship?" Carth straightened in curiosity. "Alright, lead on." He followed her back down into the Lower City, wincing slightly at the evidence of the full scale riot they had managed to trigger. "Er...where are we going to find this person?"

"Where else? The bar." Arwen smirked as she made her way to the cantina from the previous night. In truth, he hadn't said where to meet him. She just assumed it would be the bar. Hopefully, he wasn't giving her the runaround. He would sorely come to regret it.

The cantina was full, people either drinking, arguing, or outright fighting. One of the drinkers looked up from his glass, and waved at the pair. "Well, if it isn't the heroes of the race!" the mandalorian called. He waved them over, ordering drinks for the pair. As soon as they were seated he leaned over.

"Guess you're interested in that ship, then?" Carth's eyes narrowed.

"Where is this ship?"

"It's Davik's." The mandalorian drained his drink as Carth choked on his own.

"The exchange boss's? How are you going to get that?"

"Simple. I work for him. Not a lot of good work available for mandalorians after the war, you know." Carth eyed the soldier warily.

"At least I've stuck to my roots. Some of my brethren have just become backwater mercs with no honor. Pah!" Canderous spat on the ground. "Anyway, with the way the sith are set up on this planet I figure it's 'bout time I leave. I can get you access to the ship, I just need a good pilot...and the codes to allow the ship to pass through the force field, of course."

At first, Arwen wanted to be angry about his slight against mercs, but then she remembered that she couldn't give two shits about honor in the first place. This was about money for her. Always had been, always would be.

"Aaah. So that's why. We get you the ship, and all of us leave as a merry marauding band is that it? Two questions. One: where is the proof that I told you to bring? Two: why should we trust you?"

Canderous tilted his head, looking at her. "I have the proof, but I thought the pilot was in charge?" Carth straightened, tension in his body.

"I have been leading this mission," he said quietly.

"I'm a merc darling. I'm always in charge." Arwen gave him a wry smile. "And you didn't answer my questions."

Canderous chuckled, and waved over another round of drinks. Behind them blasters were drawn, and someone shot to death. Before it could get too far the fighters were herded towards the front to join the rest of the rioters.

"Here." He slid a data pad over, opened to pictures of a beautiful sleek ship. "And you don't have much choice about trusting me. It's not like you can get to the ship without my help."

"What about the codes?"

Canderous grinned and leaned back. "Kept in the sith base...but that isn't a problem." He slid over an encrypted pager. "Davik's not happy with the sith blockade. Ordered a droid specially made to crack the base and get the codes. It's ready for pick up now. All you need is to show this piece of paper to the mechanic, and she'll hand it over. Won't even have to pay."

Arwen sat back and contemplated the offer. From what she could tell, he wasn't lying. Although, he could just as easily have a strong poker face and she'd be none the wiser. However, she wasn't too keen on picking up a robot for free. It sounded suspicious in her head. Nothing was free. Ever.

"Why not?"

Canderous smirked. "Davik already paid." The idiot. Only reason why he was the leader was his ruthlessness. He wouldn't last long before someone else bumped him off and replaced him.

"Alright." Arwen finally relented. She looked at Carth and tapped her cheek for a moment. "Should we bring our new friends?"

Carth shook his head sharply. "No," he looked at the mandalorian with suspicion, "Our friends wouldn't do well in sith hands. Best we run this one solo."

Arwen raised an eyebrow. "No, not that one. The other ones."

"You...trust her alone." He looked at her, incredulous.

"Ah… true… Honestly, I was only really thinking about the sneaky one."

Carth hummed softly. Mission was rather skilled, but she was still young. He wasn't sure if he was comfortable taking her into a sith base.

"Scout it out and pick up the droid, then we'll see if the skills are needed."

She heaved a sigh. Arwen would have rather not had to deal with the sith base more than once, but he had a point. Her grenades weren't going to get them out of every situation. "Alright. Sounds fair." She turned her attention back to the Mandalorian. "We'll do the job."

Canderous grinned. "Alright. After you've got the codes meet me in the bar in the Upper City. I'll take you to Davik's then. The droid's in the twilek's shop." He finished his drink and paid, before slipping out the door, gun drawn to shoot anyone that tried to get in his way.

Carth glared darkly at the mandalorian and shook his head. "Can't believe we're being forced into this," he muttered.

"Of course we're forced, we picked up a jedi." Arwen managed to keep a straight face for a moment but a snarky grin broke through her mask. Carth rolled his eyes at the bad joke.

He drained his own drink and looked at Arwen. "Shall we?" She finished her own drink and headed out of the cantina. Arwen took note of what she had on her and decided to pick up a few more things before trying to bust into the sith base. What was it with this planet and breaking into fortresses? They dropped by the apartment, a look of frustration on Bastila's face.

"Well?" she demanded, "Find anything useful?"

Arwen stared at her blankly for a long moment before turning to the teens. "Hey kiddies. I've got good news and bad. Good news, we might be getting off this rock. Bad news, you guys still have to play babysitter."

Mission blinked at her in surprise, before brightening up. "Alright! Hey, it's no problem, we can watch the jedi. Me and Big Z can take on anything that might cause trouble!" The wookie rumbled his agreement, flexing his arms.

Bastila huffed, and turned to Carth. "Commander, any progress?" Carth straightened slightly at the reminder of his position.

"We've got a lead on a ship able to outrace the blockade. We just need codes, and we're golden."

"How are you getting the codes?" Bastila enquired. Carth shifted slightly in discomfort.

"A droid's gonna hack into the sith base for it," he admitted.

"WHAT? You're gonna draw the attention of the sith? We can't fight them!" Bastila sputtered. Carth frowned in annoyance, tapping his guns.

"Well. If you don't like that idea we can always go to plan B." Arwen answered. Her patience, not that she had much to begin with, was rapidly deteriorating.

"We're your soldiers," Carth reminded Bastila, "If you don't trust us to do our jobs we won't be able to work as a unit. If you plan to lead us you need to trust." Bastila shook her head, and Carth smirked. "Besides, who do you think we are? We are the best soldiers you could have here." Really, the only ones available, but as the only ones to survive the sith attack and avoid capture, not to mention Carth's personal track record for military success, they had proven their worth.

Carth turned and packed up what he felt would be necessary in case it came to a confrontation with the enemy soldiers, and looked at Mission and Zaalbar. "Zaalbar, we'll need you to keep this place quiet, and take down anyone who looks like they might be connected to the sith. Mission, be ready, we might need you later." Mission nodded, grinning widely.

Arwen let Carth sort things out. It was easier that way. Although, part of her had wished that the jedi had questioned what plan B was. Just the look on her face would have been worth it all. The only issue is that Carth wouldn't like plan B either. Stupid goody two-shoes.

Once Carth was finished and it was time to head out again. "Later kids. Try not to blow up the house before we get back." She said with a wave. Once they were outside Arwen heaved a sigh.

"What is with all these endless fetch quests? Honestly. I'm going to take a good long break from all this shit once we are free of this hell hole."

"Welcome to war," Carth snarked. Not that war was particularly new to either of them. Once he had been among those soldiers who good naturedly complained about one day retiring and taking a break from fighting. Those dreams had died with his planet. Still, occasionally he remembered the old jokes and complaints.

Pushing his memories of the past back to where they belong he concentrated on getting them to the mechanic shop. It was harder to find than expected. It was a rather small place, though cleaner than most mechanics kept their workplaces. A blue twilek smiled warmly at the pair.

Welcome! How may I serve you?

"Here to pick up Davik's order," Carth answered. She looked at them both suspiciously for a moment.

You have ID? Carth pushed over the datapad with Davik's signature the mandalorian had given them. The twilek studied it, and smiled at them.

It's right over here. She walked over to a corner of the shop, and revealed a state of the art utility droid, from the T3 models. It had clearly been modified for specialized work, and turned on with a soft series of beeps and clicks. The droid tilted its head testing its optics before zeroing in on the pair.

T3-M4= ready for work. Humans=new masters?

Arwen studied the clunky little droid for a moment. The frown on her face clearly showed she wasn't impressed. Arwen tossed a glance at Carth with a worried, if pointed, look.

Carth sighed and shook his head. "He looks fine. Thank you," he informed the mechanic. She smiled.

Tell Davik my services are his at any time.

"Will do." Not that Davik would ever hire her again once he learned the droid had been stolen off her. He kept the smile on his face until they were out of the shop, the droid obediently rolling after them. He looked at Arwen.

"Think we're gonna need Mission's help on this one, with the droid."

"See, I told you!" Arwen gloated as they headed back to the apartment. "Although, I really don't think this," she gestured to the robot, "is a good idea. Thing is about as subtle as a rampaging Rancor."

The robot perked up. T3-M4=good worker! Carth frowned, shaking his head. "You think Mission is good enough to hack the sith base? We need those mods the droid has to get in. Maybe remote access linking to the droid?"

Arwen ignore the bot. "I think she's better than us. I also think we should try asking one of the sith members. Nicely." The way Arwen said it suggested her version of nice would be anything but.

He opened the apartment, and Mission jumped up from where she'd been playing cards with Zaalbar. "You need me?" she asked excitedly. Carth sighed and nodded. Bouncing across the room the teenager quickly grabbed her blasters and checked her stealth generator. Bastila frowned.

"What do you need a child for?"

"Hey! I'm no kid!" Mission protested, "I'm the best in the business, and they know it!"

"If we needed a child, we'd be asking you." Arwen shot at Bastila. She stepped in front of Mission and gave the girl a quick once over. "If the going gets tough, I want you to get going. No matter what. Got that?"

The jedi spluttered indignantly, and drew herself up. "I am a jedi knight. I have fought against the sith. I am no child, no matter what you may think." Carth rolled his eyes.

"This ain't the time for this, ladies. I want to get off this rock as fast as possible." Mission looked at Arwen with solemn determined eyes.

"I've survived this long. I'll be right there when we board that ship."

Arwen was about to retort, but Carth cut her off. She heaved a sigh and focused her energy on the kid. Mission had a surprising amount of spunk. Arwen smiled and rubbed her head. "Good on ya." Arwen parted and did a final check of her supplies before she turned back to the doors.

"Lead the way." She gestured towards Carth.

Mission swatted good naturedly at Arwen's hand when she rubbed her head, and cheerfully followed the group as they left, Bastila watching them leave in outrage.


	6. Ebon Hawk

They stopped a short distance from the base. Carth went ahead, leaving them behind, to do some quick scouting, before he came back.

"There's a side door our bot should be able to get us in through," Carth said, "Then we'll just need to find a terminal linked to the base, and he'll do the rest. Mission, I'll need you scouting ahead. Keep your stealth generator on. Anything go wrong, call back to us immediately." He ran a hand through his hair, wishing he didn't have to send a kid in on this mission.

Once more into the breach. Or base in this case. Arwen followed Carth's lead again. He seemed to be good at this kind of stuff. Planning and leading were his forte. Killing and blowing shit up was hers. And Mission's, well, she was sneaky. Arwen had to give her that. Arwen kept her blaster and knife ready. She watched their six while the others took turns scouting ahead.

The mission made him uneasy. Carth kept expecting something to go wrong, but nothing had. The only soldier they'd encountered had gone down easy, and finding an empty room to hide the body? Easier. This wasn't right. This was the main outpost on Taris. The place should be crawling with soldiers. Yet the few patrols they'd slipped past had been almost skeletal in numbers.

He was practically twitching by the time they reached the terminal and T3 plugged himself in.

"How long is the download gonna take?" he muttered, fingers tapping the triggers on his blasters.

T3-M4=fastest Search + download = 1.2 min

"Great," he muttered.

Arwen was almost bored by the time they reached the terminal. Almost. The threat was big enough that it kept her on her toes, but things were going well. Arwen was ready to thank her lucky stars, if only doing so wouldn't jinx them. But the ease was almost too much to hope for. Something wasn't right, but Arwen didn't think it was something about them. As far as everyone on this planet was concerned, they were nobodies. What else could be up was beyond her though.

"How long would it take to get all that onto a portable drive?" she asked the bot.

0.2 sec

"Good. Download it onto a drive for me." Arwen said.

Mission suddenly darted down the hall towards them, stealth generator cancelled.

"Guys!" she hissed, "An actual sith is coming! Like, red lightsaber and everything! He's heading right this way!"

"I knew it," Carth growled, "I knew something would go wrong." The droid beeped in alarm, gears spinning as it downloaded as fast as it could.

"How much longer T3?" Carth barked.

0.47 sec

"Great," Carth gritted out. He tensed as the sith rounded the corner. His skin was grey and cracked, looking pretty unhealthy. As if to compensate for it heavily styled black robes swirled around him.

"A jedi invading the base for our secrets," the sith sneered, "A little too late. And now I shall have the honor of killing you, and bringing your skull before my master."

"You got something you want to tell me, Arwen?" Carth asked.

Arwen instantly pulled a grenade out, since blasters were as useful as a one legged horse. She was about to toss it, but the Sith's comment made her pause. Carth's question actually pissed her off. The look she gave him was filled with complete venom and she was half tempted to shove the grenade down Carth's throat, Sith be damned.

"I'm sorry. Did my drunken, murderous, whoring confuse you? Do I fucking ACT like a fucking JEDI?"

Carth shrugged. He would have said more, but the sith chose then to attack. Caught up in the flurry Carth found himself struggling to hold ground. Despite the fact that him, Mission, and the droid were all shooting at the sith he was easily gaining ground. Thankfully he chose to target Carth first.

Shooting the Sith wasn't going to work. At least not the way they were doing it. Arwen had been too busy yelling and missed her chance to throw a grenade. Thinking fast, she snatched Mission's blaster from her. Arwen took aim with the dual blasters, one for the head and one for the knee. Sith he might be, but that saber was only so big and he could only block one. She fired at the same time and prayed.

The shot blasted through the sith's knee. Grimacing in pain he reached for the force. A heaviness suddenly choked the air, a sense of helplessness pressing against their minds. The group struggled against it, Carth choking as he clutched at his blaster, going to pull the trigger only to give up at the last minute. The sith smirked. This was more like it. Helpless they could only watch while he approached. He could feel the woman with the multi colored hair trying to resist, her force abilities pushing back, but unless she actively chose to do something, unlikely considering her lack of training, she would be just as helpless as the rest.

He walked right into the midst of their group, limping slightly from the blast to his knee. Blood trailed behind him, but he ignored it. He would see the medics after he dealt with the intruders. His eyes lit up as he spotted the young twilek, not even an adult. Yes, killing this one would certainly cripple the traitors, emphasizing how powerless they truly were against the might of the sith. He strode towards her, even as the group began to fight harder, Mission's eyes spread wide with terror.

It was as if the very air had turned into a thousand pound weight. Arwen crumpled beneath the pressure. Her teeth ground together as she tried to resist. She had to do something. Anything! But the clouds that had a death grip on her mind refused to relent. Arwen glared darkly at the Sith as he came forth. He limped, unopposed, into the middle of their group. Arwen could feel the end come and she was determined to face it head on. Or better yet, beat it. But the Sith didn't come for her. Instead he turned towards Mission.

Arwen snapped. She lunged forward, yanking the grenade off of its clip and pulling the pin. She kept her finger on the dead man's switch and hurled herself at the Sith with almost impossible speed. Energy surged through her entire body and into her arms as she made to shove the grenade into the asshole's mouth and bury it between his teeth.

He was caught completely off guard by her movement. Jaw agape he bit down on the grenade, flinching as he realized what had happened. But no, this was impossible! She shouldn't have been able to fight against him, not with the crushing hopelessness he was forcing out. Not without some kind of training. He flinched, staring at Arwen.

Carth watched Arwen in awe. "Misssion, T3, back away," he muttered. The two nodded, practically crawling as they struggled through the heaviness that tried to hold them in place. Carth moved so he could grab Arwen if necessary, ready to play back up for her.

Arwen licked her lips and shifted. She glared straight into the Sith's gaze and put some pressure on the grenade.

"Release them." She ordered.

The sith's eyes narrowed. For a moment the heaviness increased even further, but he couldn't get a grip on the woman's mind at all. Somehow she had created shields to keep him out. Frustrated he released his grip on the force. Mission immediately turned and ran, T3 following. Carth stood, keeping his gun pointed on the sith as he backed up himself.

"I have him covered," Carth said.

"Lightsaber. Give it." Arwen demanded, ignoring Carth.

The sith really glared at her then. Slowly he turned off his lightsaber, and held out his hand to the mercenary who had him by the balls.

A huge, vindictive smile spread across her face. She took the lightsaber from him and gave him a quick once over. After mulling over her options, she continued.

"Listen Sith. You have one chance to save your sorry life. If I can use the force, then I need a teacher. Lucky for you, I have an opening. Come quietly with us, or I blow your brains all over the walls."

Carth stiffened at the betrayal. He knew he couldn't trust her! She was just like Saul! Quickly he aimed his blaster at the sith's head, and blasted his brains out.

"Carth! What the fuck?" Arwen yelled. She stuffed the pin back into the grenade and finally let go of the dead man switch. "Are you mental?"

He swung his blaster to point at Arwen. "Stay where you are, sith scum," he hissed. He had almost, almost trusted that she would help them get off this planet. He had thought that maybe, just maybe, he had misjudged the mercenary when she cared for Mission, and acted to save her when no one else did. But it was just a cover. They were just as expendable to her as the villagers who died from the rakghouls.

Arwen stared at Carth blankly. "Oye. The Sith was unnecessary. Scum I may be, but I have standards… not many, but I do."

"Yeah? And when were you planning on killing the rest of us? Once you got to the ship?" Carth demanded.

"Actually, I killed you two days back and this is really your sick and twisted idea of the afterlife. OF COURSE I WASN'T PLANNING ON KILL YOU! Well, I might have thought about it once or twice, but just you and only when you got really annoying. Kind of like now." Arwen said dryly. She really didn't have time for this shit and she had a shiny new toy to try out.

"Then why did you partner with that sith?" Carth demanded. He ignored the mention of her wanting to kill him at times. Truthfully he'd felt the exact same about her, so he couldn't be surprised.

"Is that what that looked like to you?" Arwen waved the lightsaber at the dead Sith. "Because I could have sworn that was me threatening a Sith to do what I said on pain of death. It's called a prisoner of war dumbass."

Carth arched a brow. "Right. And someone with no force training is clearly fully capable of resisting the corrupting influence of the sith and keeping them under control. You can't trust sith." Quietly he muttered "Can't trust anyone."

"Corrupting influence? Really? Do you remember who you are talking too?" Arwen pinched her brow and groaned. "This is stupid." She started to walk after Mission and droid, intending on following them outside and out of danger.

Carth scowled, and followed after her. "You haven't exactly been a model representative of the Republic," Carth argued.

"I know." Arwen snorted. "If anyone was in danger of corruption, it was him. I don't care about the Sith. I couldn't give two shits about the Jedi. But come on, if you could use the force, wouldn't you want to learn?"

"The jedi are more trustworthy," Carth pointed out, "and much less likely to turn on you. If you wish to learn, at least pick someone who won't be plotting to kill you."

"I'd rather have someone plotting to kill me than trying to lobotomize me." Arwen replied hotly. "And for the record, no the Jedi are not trustworthy. At all."

"The jedi are the only thing standing between the sith completely wiping us out," Carth argued, "How is that not trustworthy? They fight for the republic!"

"So do I. Do you trust me?"

She...had a point. Carth nodded his head grudgingly, giving in. Silently they walked the rest of the way to meet Mission and T3.

"You guys alright?" Mission exclaimed. Worry gleamed in her bright eyes as she rushed up to them, checking them over.

Arwen held up her new lightsaber and grinned. "New toy." She exclaimed proudly. "And I gave Carth an existential crisis. So, I'd say this mission was successful. Ready to get off this rock?" Arwen's tone was light, but she shot Carth a glare that said she wasn't through with him. All joking aside, Arwen did not appreciate having a blaster pointed at her face by an ally. Or at least, by someone who wasn't an enemy or another mercenary.

Carth watched Arwen warily as she waved about her prize. "You'd best get some training with that. It's not like using a regular vibroblade," he commented lightly. Mission oohed over the lightsaber, eyes alight.

"Wow! Can you really use that?" she asked excitedly. The droid beeped to get her attention.

Drive=ready He opened a compartment, revealing a small drive with the codes downloaded like she'd requested.

"Yeah, let's get out of here." Mission successful, despite how stressful it'd been. Now they just needed to meet back up with Bastila and Zaalbar and go back to the bar to meet the mandalorian.

"Thanks..." Arwen frowned at the droid. So much for that plan. She shrugged, pocketed the drive, and holstered the saber. "And of course I can use it. Let's get out of here before anything else happens."

* * *

They headed back to the apartment, Carth frowning as he noted the absence of sith soldiers on the streets. It should be crawling with them with the recent riot down in the Lower City. Something was wrong.

They entered the apartment and Bastila leaped up. "Finally! Did you get it?" Her eyes skittered over to Arwen, fixating on the lightsaber. Emotion drained from her face and she stepped forward.

"I'll take that," she said politely.

Arwen put her hand on her saber and smiled dangerously. "Try it. Please."

Bastila frowned politely. "You are not trained for using a lightsaber. You could easily kill yourself trying to use it without."

"Seriously? What's so hard to understand about swish, swish, stab? It's a fucking lightsaber, not a star destroyer."

"It has no weight, so it's easily overbalanced in swings, and it harmonizes with the force within a user. Without training the laser will...fluctuate."

"Wow. Really? Well, in that case… nope, still don't give a fuck." Arwen walked away from the Jedi, her hand still on the saber. She made her way over to Mission and rubbed the girl on the head.

"Good job out there. You listened well."

Mission beamed, and stuck her tongue out at the jedi. Bastila stared at her in shock. Carth sighed.

"Alright, well...we gotta go meet up with Canderous. Pack everything you need, we'll be leaving as soon as we get that ship." Zaalbar packed easily, only having a couple weapons and a pack of cards to grab. Mission stuffed some more into his bag, while Bastila watched the movement in surprise. She had nothing to pack, having lost everything to the Beks when enslaved.

The group headed to the bar, the droid waiting outside for the group. Canderous looked surprised at the size of the group that came, eyeing them suspiciously as Carth and Arwen walked over to him. Arwen gave Canderous a little wave as she approached.

"You're really taking all those people with you?" Canderous asked.

"If it's a problem I think we can get rid of robotic junk and the droid." Arwen said, thrusting her thumb at Bastilla.

Canderous laughed as Carth glared at Arwen. "We rescued her for a reason," he grumbled, "the republic needs her." He muttered, "No matter how annoying she is." The mandalorian's laugh grew louder, Bastila staring at the group with suspicion.

"No, it's fine," Canderous waved off. "They'll have to wait to be picked up though. I can sneak two of you at most into the Exchange base. Rest will have to wait for pick up." Carth sighed and looked at Arwen.

"Partnered up again it seems," he muttered.

"I'd say the universe was telling us something if you hadn't pointed a pistol at my face." Arwen whispered to Carth. She glared at him for a moment. "Soon as we get off this rock, you and I need to talk. Keep your head this time." Carth eyed her suspiciously but nodded.

Arwen dropped her glare and was all smiles for the rest of the group. She went over to the teens and put a hand on Mission's shoulders. "You know what to do. Keep her out of trouble, okay?"

Mission beamed at the assignment. "Course! You can count on me and Big Z!"

We'll wait by Warehouse Docking Zone 11, Zaalbar added. Bastila didn't look pleased about again being left behind.

"Don't you think that as your superior officer, I should be the one to go with you, Commander Onansi?" Bastila demanded. Carth winced, and looked to Arwen for help.

"You'd think, but you'd be wrong." Arwen chimed in, always eager to piss off the jedi. "Sorry sweety, but you're the damsel in distress. You're job is to look pretty, get captured, and go where we point you."

Bastila frowned icily, the mandalorian chuckling. "Let's just get out of here before we attract too much attention," Carth said quickly. Someone in this group was going to die, he just knew it. It was a toss up on who would be committing the act though: Arwen, out of sheer aggravation, or him, from finally snapping.

Thankfully the rest of the group was much less difficult to deal with, though the mandalorian continued to make wisecracks about Bastila the entire way there. The place they went to was a surprisingly luxurious private home with its own personal garage for spacecraft. Carth whistled in admiration as they walked up.

"They certainly don't pay that well in the army," Carth muttered. Canderous laughed.

"Got that right." Carth eyed the mandalorian warily, unsure how to feel about having something in common with someone he would have been trying to kill just a couple years ago. Canderous nodded at the guard at the door.

"New recruits to replace the ones we lost to the rakghouls," Canderous explained. The guard nodded and waved them through.

"That was easy," Carth muttered. The mandalorian shrugged.

"Perks of being trusted." They walked through the house easily, heading back to the garage. It was just coming into view when the planet started shaking...and the first explosions began to hit.

"Fuck." Arwen recovered from her small stumble when the ground had started to shake.

Carth cursed, partial flashbacks of being on another bombed planet flashing through his mind.

"They're gonna take out the planet!" Taris would go up easy. The entire city was balanced on metal plates after all, blows in the right place would trigger a reaction big enough to wipe out almost everyone living there, and the sith were thorough at killing. The echoes of their deaths screamed through the force as thousands died. Carth knew something had been wrong with all the sith soldiers disappearing!

"What are you waiting for?!" She yelled at Canderous. "Go!"

Their stealthy attempt to get through the Exchange building was quickly changed to a fast paced run. They didn't have time to be cautious with the planet being destroyed right under them. Hitting the garage Canderous rapidly punched in the code to let them in. They ran towards the ship, only to have another pair running in from the other direction: Davik, the Exchange boss, and Calo Nord.

"Should have known the sith would have attacked us-what? Hey, they're trying to steal my ship! Stop them!" Calo quickly drew his blaster and began to shoot. Unfortunately he was just as good as his name implied. Carth got hit pretty good in the leg, barely managing to get to cover. Canderous was grinning madly as he grabbed a grenade.

"Game of chance, anyone?" Canderous asked. With the planet being blown up there was a fifty/fifty chance the grenade wouldn't just take out Calo, but the ceiling as well.

Arwen dived for cover. She pulled her blaster out and started shooting back as quickly as she could. Canderous produced a grenade and Arwen's first instinct was to say yes. But one look at Carth's injured leg made her stop. With a low, frustrated growl, Arwen shook her head.

"Take him, I'll cover you." Arwen gestured towards Carth. She pulled out her second pistol and started to fire. It wasn't accurate, but a hail of blaster fire was what they needed.

Canderous shrugged, disappointed he couldn't blow them up, but grabbed Carth and ran for the ship.

"Stop them!" Davik shrieked. Calo aimed for them, and even managed to shoot Canderous a few times, but the mandalorian's armor kept the shots from penetrating and Arwen's cover fire meant he couldn't aim long enough to shoot Canderous in the head. Carth shot back at them as well, managing to kill Davik before being dragged onto the ship.

Calo looked at his dead employer and shrugged. He stopped fighting and walked toward the ship-just in time for the ceiling to collapse, burying him.

Arwen took off the second the blaster fire stopped flying. She dashed towards the ship as the ceiling began to cave inwards. Her hands flew to her head as rubble started falling around her. Pain shot through her head as one caught her in the temple. Arwen crumpled. The world went black for a few seconds.

When she managed to reopen her eyes, everything was fuzzy and out of focus. She shook her head, but that only made the world spin. Arwen struggled to her feet, trying to stumble towards the ship and cursing her idiocy.

Carth settled in the pilot seat and started the ignition sequence. "Check on Arwen," Carth ordered. Canderous nodded and headed back to where Arwen had been crouched. He cursed seeing the collapsed ceiling and the mercenary wandering about with a concussion. He hurried out and grabbed her, dragging her onto the ship.

"Hurry ya daft girl, we don't have time for this," the mandalorian snapped. He pushed Arwen into a chair and hurried to where the guns on the ship were, slipping into place.

"Shut up. I saved your ass." Arwen spat back. Arwen strapped herself into the chair and focused on not puking. As much as she hated to admit it, everything was in Carth's hands down.

The ship took to the air, and Carth expertly steered them around the buildings to the dock where the group was waiting. Other ships could be seen in the air trying to escape, only to be shot out of the sky or crash into the shield blocking the planet from access.

Hovering just outside Carth lowered the entrance, Canderous beckoning to the group.

"Come on!" he roared. Mission looked shaken, Zaalbar dragging her after him onto the ship. T3 rolled on, beeping in distress, as Bastila coolly walked aboard.

Everyone's here, Zaalbar reported.

"Don't get us blown up!" Arwen yelled.

"I know what I'm doing!" Carth yelled back. He promptly cursed as he turned the ship sideways to dodge a barrage of lasers.

Reaching the shield Carth quickly jammed in the drive the droid had made with the code. It opened, and they shot through. Several ships turned to follow them, but the ship really did live up to its rep, fast enough to outrun the larger battleships. Leaping to warp speed Carth whooped in delight as they vanished from the fight.

"And that, ladies and gentlemen, is how you fly," he declared. Locking them in autopilot to drift through the warp path for a while he headed back to where everyone else was. He frowned as he noticed the grim atmosphere.

"You guys alright? Thought we got everyone." Mission promptly burst into tears, Zaalbar rumbling quietly to her to comfort her. Bewildered Carth backed up.

"What did I say?"

Bastila rolled her eyes. "Her planet was just destroyed, Commander. Try and show a little more tact," Bastila said coolly. Carth paled, his wife flashing before his eyes.

"Right," he choked out.

"Woo… " Arwen monotoned with poorly disguised fake cheer. She pushed herself to her feet. With one hand on her head and the other on the wall, she started to head back.

"I call the toilet for the next hour." Was all she said to the others as she made her way the bathroom.

They barely acknowledged her as she passed. Sighing Bastila looked to Carth.

"We need to head to Dantooine. I need to speak with the council about what to do next," Bastila informed him.

"I thought the jedi council was on Coruscant?" Carth said on confusion.

"They were, but relocated to our ancestral grounds to protect them from being found by the sith. It would be a grave loss to the jedi order if our council was destroyed," Bastila stated calmly. Carth sighed, and looked around at the group. Mission looked in shock, and Zaalbar was staying close to the girl. Canderous just plain didn't look like he cared, and the droid? Who knew what it was thinking. Running a hand through his hair he nodded.

"Alright, I can take you to Dantooine. I'm gonna need to report into my superiors as well when we get there. They'll probably want to reassign me." Carth returned to the front and plotted a course to Dantooine. Shakily he fell back into the chair and stared at his leg.

"Great," he muttered. He was going to need help with this.

Bastila glanced over to where Carth was grumpily allowing Canderous to help him with his leg. He seemed to trust the mandalorian, if only because they were both soldiers. It didn't stop him from resting a hand on one of his blasters, ready to shoot if the mandalorian did anything wrong. Satisfied they were occupied the jedi walked to the bathroom and knocked on the door.

"Soldier Fahey," she said quietly, "You need to be checked."

Arwen hurled into the toilet. She panted and paid the Jedi little attention. Instead, Arwen sat back and pulled out a flask from one of her pouches. A quick flick of the flask told her that it was closer to the empty side. Arwen frowned and took a swig. Unfortunately, it instantly came back up and she was leaning over the toilet again.

Concerned when she heard Arwen hurling inside Bastila opened the door. She tsked slightly at the sight of the ill mercenary. Fluidly she crossed the small space to Arwen's side.

"Here, let me help. I learned some basic healing from my master," Bastila told Arwen.

Arwen thought about it for a moment. Her stomach rumbled and the light was really starting to bug her eyes. Or maybe that was just the Jedi. "Pass. I'd rather puke."

"There could be serious damage," Bastila said sternly, "And unfortunately I am the only one with anything beyond basic first aid on this ship."

"Serious damage?" Arwen parroted. "Good. Maybe I can forget you exist too."

"Do not be foolish, Fahey," Bastila pushed, "Brain damage is a serious matter. While our medics can do much, it is best looked at immediately."

"If I say yes, will you leave me alone?"

"If that is what you wish, once I am done then yes," Bastila answered.

"Fine." Arwen reluctantly agreed.

Bastila placed her hands on Arwen's head. Something hummed between them, moving down a path connecting them that had been there for some time, if dormant before now. The jedi's presence in the force was cool and soothing, gently brushing against the parts of her mind that hurt and healing them. The nausea and dizziness slowly faded to be more distant, if not entirely gone. Bastila's presence brushed once through the entirety of Arwen's mind, and pulled away. She smiled.

"Everything seems in order."

Arwen shifted uncomfortably. She did not like the sensation of another poking around her head. To make matters worse, she felt… something. It was hard to tell what because of the concussion. But as the pain and nausea cleared, she was left with a distinct impression of being connected to the jedi. Arwen shivered and stood the second Bastila left.

"I hope you get nightmares." She hissed. Arwen exited the bathroom with a wave. "Enjoy my trauma." What I can remember of it anyways.

Bastila shivered faintly as the mercenary passed her. Truly, she disliked her. But, she had her task, and she would do it with honor.


	7. Jedi Council

It didn't take long for Arwen to find the kitchen and start raiding it for whatever looked and smelled remotely like booze. She had already finished her emergency stash of liquor. It wasn't nearly enough to scrub the sensation of the jedi from her brain. Much less her memory.

Unfortunately for pretty much everyone on the Ebon Hawk, this was a smuggler's ship. Which meant that it was _very_ well stocked with liquor, and good liquor at that. While Mission freaked out about her home planet being destroyed and leaving Taris behind, Zaalbar as a steadfast support, and T3 ran self repairs and updates, Arwen was left with no one to stop her. Bastila had chosen to retreat to her room to meditate, and Canderous? Well, with Carth's leg fixed, he was more than happy to help Arwen drink.

Arwen pulled her head back from her latest glass. She raised it happily, swaying slightly from her high buzz.

"To the pilot!" She cheered, gesturing to Carth as she drunkenly giggled. "And to the scum of the planet for our booze!"

Carth groaned from where he was sitting. "Who let her into the liquor?"

"What liquor?" Arwen joked, spilling the rest of the bottle into her glass. Canderous let out a loud laugh, lifting his own glass.

"To Revan! A grander warrior there never was!" Carth shot the mandalorian a dark glare for that, fingers itching for his blaster. They were off the planet, did he have to keep the mandalorian alive any longer?

No, he was a good guy. A member of the republic. He couldn't just kill people who annoyed him. Carth took a deep breath.

"Here, here." Arwen downed it all in one go and was smiled as broad as a cheshire cat. Arwen was finally feeling light again. They were off that god-forsaken-planet and the sith were behind them. All she had to do was get dropped off at their first destination and she could say goodbye to this adventure drawn crowd.

Arwen eyed Carth. There was a predatory glint in her gaze. She stood and shambled over to him, swaying her hips with every step. Arwen draped her arms over his shoulders and pulled in close. "You, need to relax." She leaned over to whisper into his hears. "Let me help you."

Carth looked revolted, and sharply shoved her away. "You hate me, remember? We want to kill each other?" He looked at the ceiling. "Force help me, why can't this ship move faster?" it wasn't that Arwen wasn't pretty. While she was not the most eye catching woman on the ship, Bastila definitely prettier, she was still a woman, and having her pressed up against him did not help. He did NOT want an embarrassing reaction, especially from someone he had tried to strangle just a couple days ago.

"So?" Arwen continued to wiggle against him. "What's one hate fuck among friends? Come on. We deserve this."

"Arwen, so help me, if you keep doing this I _will_ knock you out, and you'll wake up enlisted."

Arwen pulled away instantly. "You do that and I'll shave your balls. Off. Permanently."

"What do you have against war?" Canderous asked curiously, "You make a fine warrior." Carth simply heaved a sigh of relief, preferring an Arwen that threatened him than one that flirted.

"Nothing. It's enlistment I hate. I'm a merc, not a soldier. I don't enlist. I do contracts. Contracts!" She added for emphasis and went back to the table. She stared at Canderous for a moment and said, "Why couldn't you be twenty years younger?"

Canderous leered at her. "For you, I'll be anything you want." Chuckling he took another deep swig of the bottle. Carth banged his head on the wall. If only he didn't need to be sober to land the ship.

Arwen eyed Canderous for a moment. Finally, she slid her hand towards the door and gave him a look that said "After you."

"Oh no!" Carth stood up and hobbled to the door. "No. Nuh-uh. Nix. Not happening." He crossed his arms. "You are both drunk. If you wake up regretting this you'll be unlivable." Canderous frowned.

"The lady knows her mind!" the mandalorian protested. The heavily muscled warrior pushed on Carth, easily sending the wounded man stumbling back.

"You had your chance." Arwen teased as she followed after Canderous. "Later gimp. Keep the kids out of our hair, okay?"

Carth groaned from his place on the floor, massaging his sore leg as the couple wandered down the halls. Why, oh why, couldn't the sith have captured him? He was sure the torture would be so much better than watching this.

Remembering that he actually didn't like Arwen cheered him up. He wouldn't have to put up with her anymore once they landed. Mind firmly fixed on how they were soon to be separated he went back to the cockpit and concentrated on steering.

* * *

 _The small group of jedi pressed forward. Most of the sith between them and Revan had been killed by this point, but a few still stood. Each fallen jedi was one less defence against the powerful sith, but the mission to take Revan down had to succeed._

 _The last of the sith fell, only Bastila and two others remaining. Slowly Revan turned from the window and looked at Bastila. It was impossible to tell what he was thinking with the mask covering his face. Bastila stood still for a moment, before stepping forward. Revan drew his lightsaber, and they quickly clashed. The force was thick in the air, Bastila's cool light presence pressing against Revan's thicker darker one. Bastila sweated. It was clear he was just toying with her. She fell back to regroup, only for an explosion to rock the ship…_

Arwen awoke naked and in bed next to the other mercenary. The pounding in her head, plus her lack of clothes, told her all she needed to know. Arwen glanced at the sleeping older man and shrugged. She'd done worse. Literally.

Then there was the dream. It didn't feel like a dream. Worst of all, it felt like that damned Jedi was there as well. Granted, the dream was about Bastilla, but it was more than that. Arwen could actually feel her presence. That was disquieting.

Arwen got dressed quickly, making sure to belt her new lightsaber in securely before heading to the bridge.

"Morning. Where'd we end up?"

"Jedi enclave on Dantooine. Seems the Jedi council is hiding out here." Carth snorted. He appreciated the Jedi that helped fight against the sith, but Arwen had reminded him of how the Jedi had almost allowed the republic to be destroyed in the first place. If Revan hadn't gone nuts Carth would likely still follow him.

Arwen groaned. As if that was what she needed, more jedi. Speaking of… Arwen glanced around the room but the jedi was nowhere to be found. Something told her she wouldn't find Bastila on the ship. Good. Arwen turned her attention back to Carth and crossed her arms over her chest.

"We still need to talk."

Carth nodded in agreement. "We agreed to work together until we left Taris, but I'm sure you expected to end up with such a large group as much as I did. I'm gonna see if the Republic's willing to offer a job to Canderous. Guy's so war hungry, safer than risking him joining the sith. The droid will be repurposed, plenty of uses for a utility droid, and Bastila will go back to helping lead the war. That does leave the kids at a loose end though." Carth sighed.

"I'll probably be assigned back on the front lines, and that's no place for kids their age. I'd find a home to take them in, but Mission grew up on Taris' streets. I doubt she'd stay. So I was hoping you'd take 'em. Mission seems to look up to you, at least, and I trust you wouldn't drag them into too much trouble."

Not exactly the topic she wanted to touch on, but alright. She'd bite.

"No." Arwen crossed her arms over her chest.

Carth arched a brow. "You got a better suggestion than dumping them on Dantooine? Mission just lost everything. I don't know about Zaalbar, but I doubt he has anyone either."

"Not my problem." Arwen replied haughtily. "I'm not their mom. I'm not their babysitter. I'm a mercenary. Not a nanny."

Carth clenched his hands. "That willing to leave someone behind, huh? Should have known better than to ask a merc for anything," Carth spat.

"That's right. I'm a merc. A fact you conveniently keep forgetting. Oh, and speaking of." Arwen jabbed her fist forward, smacking Carth clear across the face. If she was lucky, he'd get a really pretty black eye.

Arwen pulled her fist back, letting it relax into a hand so she could shake the pain out. "That's for calling me a sith."

Caught off guard Carth's head smacked back from the force of her blow. Cursing he looked up at her. "The hell?"

"You called me a sith and pointed your gun at me. Be grateful I'm letting you off with only a shiner." Arwen quickly inspected her knuckles. They were a little bruised, but not bad.

"You were partnering with one! What was I supposed to think?" Carth exclaimed.

"I was threatening one!" Arwen bit back. "You weren't thinking! We could have used him! He might have had information. He might have been able to teach me how to use the force power that I've been cursed with! I wasn't going to partner with him. I was going to use him! Get that through your thick head!"

"We were in a hurry, if you didn't notice. Poor time for starting something like that, unless you already had something set up before then. That guy's bosses blew up the planet, remember?"

"Except we didn't know about that until AFTER you blew his brains out." Arwen could feel her blood pressure rising. She was sorely tempted to just hit him again. "You know what? Forget it. I wash my hands of you. Of this ship. Of the Jedi and the Sith."

Arwen stormed out of the cockpit. She stomped towards where she had thrown her belongings the night before and started doing a once over to make sure everything was there. Maybe she'd hit Carth's bag before leaving and rob him blind. That was bound to make her feel better.

Bastila entered the ship and quietly walked over to where Arwen was. She watched for a moment before speaking. "The jedi council wishes to see you," she announced.

Arwen stopped what she was doing and grabbed a data pad. She stood and held up a finger, telling Bastilla to wait. Looking down, at the pad she punched in several commands before dragging her finger across the screen. When she was done she gave Bastilla a broad smile and handed her the datapad.

"There ya' go." She grinned and went back to her work. On the datapad was a large, hand drawn 'U.'

Bastila looked down at the data pad in confusion, before scowling at it. "They are aware that you have force capabilities, and I am unsure if you are aware, but there is a...connection between us. They wish to examine it."

"Don't know. Don't care." Well, it was half a lie. Arwen got up and made her way over to Carth's things. She began to rummage through it, randomly pulling out an item and examining it for potential value.

"They believe that you may hold the key to stopping the war," Bastila tried desperately.

"Really? Well in that case-" Arwen stood up, taking her randomly selected prize from Carth's bag. She grabbed her own and shoved it inside before shouldering the pack. "See you never." Arwen gave the jedi a cocky two fingered salute and started to head towards the exit.

Frustrated Bastila snatched at Arwen's arm to stop her. "This is important! Do you truly have so little care for the universe?"

Arwen glanced down at the hand on her arm before staring blankly at Bastila. "Yes." She yanked her arm out of Bastila's reach. "The universe hasn't done shit for me. All it does is take. So, I don't really give a fuck about what happens to it. So long as I get paid."

Sorrow and fear reflected for a moment in the jedi's eyes before she stepped into Arwen's way. "Then...we'll make sure you're paid. And we'll train you. Teach you to use your powers."

This was why she hated the jedi. "Pass." Arwen said as she pushed past Bastila. "You still haven't paid me from before. Not to mention, sticking around is going to be more trouble than it's worth. I have no interest in joining your little cult. It can go up in flames for all I care. Actually,"

Arwen spun around she squared up against the jedi and glared at Bastila. "You lot piss me off. Riding around on your high horses like some kind of saints. But I know your laws. Your rules. You don't take in adults. You don't train them. So either you're lying to me, or you're a bunch of narcissistic hypocrites. Either way, to me, you're no better than the sith."

Bastila watched her in shock, fear flickering across her face before she managed to hide it again. "It is a time of war. While normally we would not take in someone your age, as the mental discipline required to handle the force is difficult when taught at a later age, we've found we cannot afford to be picky. The discovery of the connection between us only makes it more clear that the force is guiding us here."

"Blow me. I'll learn this magic voodoo shit on my own. Just as I have everything else." Arwen snapped. What little satisfaction she got from actually seeing fear on the jedi's face disappeared quickly.

Compassion formed on Bastila's face. "I know the universe has...not been fair to you," Bastila said quietly, "But we are here now. Please, accept this."

Arwen froze. She hadn't exactly forgotten Bastila had been poking around in her head, as much as she would have liked too. Plus, that look of pity was really pissing Arwen off. She grabbed the jedi by the collar and snarled. "Go on. Tell me, just how unfair has my life been?" It wasn't a question, it was a warning.

Bastila froze, staring at the mercenary. Immediately she reached for the force to try and calm the furious woman before her.

Arwen wanted to punch her black and blue. She wanted to beat the jedi within an inch of her life. But the pressure against it started to grow. Arwen could feel the way Bastila was pushing her, but couldn't do anything about it. All of her fight and anger left her. She felt like a rapidly deflating balloon. Arwen's hands released the jedi against her wishes. Her energy was gone.

"That's messed up." Arwen mumbled. This was just one more reason why she needed to leave. There was no way she'd let some cult dig into her brain and change her at their will. Arwen turned around and continued making her way down the ramp. She had to find another ship, and fast. Before the jedi did something else to her mind.

Bastila watched in desperation as Arwen walked away.

Cursing Carth stumbled out of the cockpit, took one look at Arwen, and cursed more. "Why did ya have to still be here?" he moaned. Clutched in his hand was a credit chips stick.

 _As if the jedi wasn't bad enough._ Arwen thought sourly. She turned and was planning to stick her tongue out at him like a little kid, but the shiny gleam of a credit stick caught her eye. Arwen's greed quickly took over. Avoiding the promise of money was one thing. Avoiding money in front of her was an entirely different beast.

"Please tell me that's for me."

"Yes, it is," Carth grumbled. He tossed the money to her. "Apparently it's the last of the money owed you for your services on the Endar Spire, and a hefty bonus on top for helping us get out of Taris. For some reason, they wanna offer you a contract to keep helping."

"Define 'they'." Arwen asked dubiously as she stuffed the card into a pouch. She had a sneaking suspicion she didn't want to know.

"The Republic Army," Carth answered. Bastila beamed as she stepped forward.

"It's a great opportunity, and we can train you to be an even greater asset here," Bastila inserted. Carth shot Bastila a suspicious look.

"What are you talking about?" he asked warily.

"The jedi council is interested in the force connection between myself and Arwen, and have offered her training," Bastila explained. Carth shrugged.

"Better than a sith." He looked to Arwen. "Feel free to walk away."

"Alright." Arwen relented. "To him, not to you." She quickly amended. Arwen still had no interest in the jedi. But she couldn't exactly say no to good money. The Republic paid well. Good money like that was hard to come by.

Carth sighed. "Contract's in the cockpit. Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off duty." Carth headed to the kitchen to get drunk. Bastila frowned.

"Are you truly so against training your gifts?" she asked.

"Training in general? No. Training with you? Yes." Arwen huffed and started back inside the ship. "What part of 'I don't like jedi' don't you understand?"

"What do you have against us?" Bastila asked in puzzlement.

"You..." Arwen gaped at the jedi for a moment. "Wow. That's some powerful brainwashing."

Bastila looked taken back. "Brainwashing? We would never brainwash people! We use our abilities for the good of others!"

"If I didn't hate you so much, I'd actually think your naivete was kind of cute. But I do. And I don't." Arwen rolled her eyes and threw up your hands. "Go meditate on a rock or something."

Bastila frowned. "You have accepted a contract with the Republic military, and will most likely be working with jedi in this war. You should at least meet those you shall be working with."

Arwen scowled. "Fine! If I go with you to see your little club, will you get off my back about this?"

Bastila blinked in shock. "You… you agree to see them?" She'd been so stubborn Bastila hadn't actually believed that she'd manage to wear her down.

"Just to be clear, I don't give a fuck what they have to say. I just want you to shut up." Arwen ducked into the cockpit and grabbed the data pad with the contract. She quickly read it over and signed it. _I'm going to regret this,_ she thought bitterly.

Bastila sighed. She was so stubborn. If only she wasn't necessary.

"Well, come along then," the jedi said. She lead Arwen through the jedi enclave. Several of them glanced at Arwen curiously, able to sense her force presence. It was fairly powerful, and better tempered than most untrained force users. The taint that kept it from being controlled distracted several, and padawans were sent away to keep them from being influenced by her.

Bastila entered the council room, and bowed. "Soldier Fahey has agreed to discuss the force connection forged between us, though she respectfully declines offers of training." Arwen snorted at Bastila's "respectfully declining" comment. That was not how she'd phrase it. Although, her phrasing would have several rude gestures in addition to her vile tongue.

Four older men stood in the room. Two were humans, one watching with a look of interest, while the other glared sharply at Arwen. A violet twi'lek, wrinkles lining his face, smiled in welcome, while an odd small green alien, impossibly ancient looking, beamed at them.

"Aware of her inclinations towards the dark side?" the grouchy man grumbled.

"Vrook!" the twi'lek exclaimed. He turned back to them. "Forgive my friend's hasty words. The war has been rather weary on us all, and he is disinclined towards changing our ways, no matter the necessities. I am Master Zhar, these are Master Vrook, Master Vandar, and Master Dorak."

The whole place gave her the creeps. It itched, getting under her skin and poking at her mind like an incessant wasp. Arwen wanted nothing more than to be done with this whole thing. It really didn't help that the "jedi masters" were all looking down their noses at her. Arwen wanted to bind them to a chair, poke all their eyes out, and have their own eyeballs watch them for an eternity. See how they like it.

Arwen casually flashed her middle finger at the man. "Shut up. You lot clearly don't want me in here any more than I want to be here. Stop beating around the bush and tell me what you want."

Master Vrook glared at her. "You will treat us with respect!" he demanded.

Arwen threw her head back and laughed. "It's you fuckwits who wanted to see me. Not the other way around. Besides, I'm only giving as good as I get. That's fair right? Or am I too low for the high and mighty?"

With a thunderous expression Master Vrook turned to the rest. "I do not care how gifted she is, she cannot possibly help us!"

"Her signature unlock the ruins, it will," Master Vandar replied.

"She does have a connection with Bastila," Master Dorak added, "Surely this warrants an examination. Why would the force connect them?"

Arwen shot Bastilla a confused look. "Translation?"

Bastila frowned at Arwen. She'd thought it was pretty clear. "A connection such as ours is unusual. I am unsure how it formed, and the fact that I sensed your presence in my dream last night was highly unusual. There must be a reason why it formed. The council wishes to study it, to see if they can discern the reason."

Arwen put a hand on her hip and smirked. "You know what I'm going to say."

"We cannot condone endangering Jedi Bastila by leaving this connection unexamined," Master Zhar stated. "For now, we open our hospitality to you. You are free to leave the enclave of course, but we must insist you stay on planet until things are cleared in our minds."

"Okay, bye." Arwen waved dismissively at the jedi and headed for the door with every plan to find the first outbound ship; just because they said not too.

The council frowned. Bastila stayed behind, bowing slightly and hoping to explain the rude mercenary's reactions without further offending the powerful group.


	8. The Canyon

Canderous had awoken at this point, and cheerfully walked off the ship. He didn't look like he'd suffered from a hangover at all, clean and dressed for the day. A large gun was slung over his shoulder. He waved at Arwen.

"Hey! You get a contract as well?" Canderous shouted.

"Yup." Arwen said, popping the p. "Considering just dropping it though." Arwen stopped at gave Canderous a quick once over. "You know. We work well. Wanna just say screw the contract and go find something better? Team up and all that jazz?"

Canderous drew himself up. "I've taken the contract, and I do have my pride. Besides," he grinned darkly, "I'll have plenty of chances to test myself in this war."

Well, so much for that plan. Arwen couldn't help but prickle a little at his words. She had pride too! But the temptation to dick over the Jedi was really strong. Besides, nothing good would come from hanging around them.

"Whatever." Arwen brushed passed Canderous. She could find the data pad. Put a few blaster holes into it. That way, no one would know she had signed and Carth would just assume she was being a jerk as usual. Ugh, but the money was really good. Arwen messed the strap of her back as she struggled internally. Money or common sense? Credits or getting the hell out of dodge. Jedi or her pride?

"Hey, Carth said we're gonna be here for a while. Gonna go see if there's any bounties I can scare up, or at least decent game to hunt. You in?" Canderous invited.

"Sure. Why not?" Arwen conceded. An easy job or a fun hunt might have been exactly what she needed. Something simple to clear her head and let her stew on the problem. A fun distraction.

Canderous grinned. He double checked his ammo and happily swaggered out of the compound, uncaring for the uneasy looks and distaste shot his way by the jedi.

They didn't get far out of the compound before someone ran up to them.

"Please, please help me!" the man said, "I'm out of options! The blasted jedi won't help, and there's no one else to turn to. I swear, it will be well worth it!" Canderous looked over the settler measuringly.

"What do you want?" he grunted.

"A group of bandits-they killed my daughter! I want revenge," the man snarled.

Arwen was onboard at the mention of the useless Jedi. She was absolutely pumped by the time he finished. Arwen put a steadying hand on the man's shoulder. "And you will have it." There was murder in her eyes.

"They've been hanging around the southern canyon. It's been impassible lately, with the kath hounds acting so vicious, but they've been seen around there. Make them pay!"

"How many bandits?" Arwen asked. "If you don't know, take a guess. Actually, anything you can tell us about them would be great."

"There's at least five of them, though I've heard some say there's as many as twenty. They're well armed, swords and axes, though there's a few good blasters in the group. Not sure how accurate that is, with the rumors. No one's managed to get them cause of the blasted kath hounds going insane. I know they've got a couple old hoverbikes they've used, saw it when they left...but that's all I know."

"Sounds like fun." Arwen replied. She turned to Canderous and smiled. "Care to take the lead?"

The mandalorian smirked. Clicking off the safety of his gun he lead the way out towards the south canyon.

The settler hadn't known half of the truth. There was something very, very wrong with the south canyon. Dantooine was a powerful presence in the force, dotted with several areas that were exceptionally powerful and held sacred by those who could use the force. It was why the jedi had formed their enclave here in the first place. One of those areas happened to be nestled in the south canyon, but had become contaminated. Rage and power rolled out from it, agitating the wild life into aggression and strengthening all that was there. An already dangerous area made even more so with the Dark side of the Force laying claim to it.

Arwen felt even worse than usual, and that was saying something. It was pretty lucky that birds weren't singing because she probably would have shot them if they were. It was this place. There was something wrong about it and she could feel it to her very core. It pissed her off.

Arwen snarled. Her blaster was out and her finger was just itching to pull the trigger at the first thing that moved. Finally, Arwen couldn't take it anymore.

"GET THE FUCK OUT HERE YOU STUPID SON'S OF BITCHES! YOU HAVE TWO SECONDS OR I'LL DRAG YOUR ASSES OUT OF YOUR GLORY HOLES AND CURB STOMP YOUR SORRY EXISTENCES INTO THE NEXT GOD DAMNED LIFE!"

Canderous swung his gun towards Arwen, the mandalorian almost shooting her out of shock of how suddenly the silence was broken. Thankfully he was quick to rein it in.

Something else wasn't so lucky, a twig snapping as something moved through the undergrowth. Canderous smirked. He aimed, blood thrumming in his veins. A branch snapped, breaking off a tree.

Arwen fired two quick shots at whatever was moving. The vein in her neck was threatening to burst.

Canderous cursed, long and loud, as Arwen fired off her blaster. His own gun swung to point at what she'd hit, only to stare in disbelief at the neatly dissected branch. He turned to her.

"What the bleeding hell was that?"

"Misplaced aggression." Arwen replied dryly. She kept her blaster out, her finger itching to fire it several dozen times more. "Once we find those bandits, it won't be misplaced."

"Right…" Canderous continued, half an eye on his partner this time. He didn't want to be the one shot if she snapped again.

They didn't get far before an ugly pack of kath hounds set upon them. They weren't joking about the infestation. The brutes were bigger than they should be, and there was a madness in their eyes that had him wary of any possible bites. It didn't stop Canderous from grinning as he hunted them, and maybe using a machete on one that got too close.

Arwen shot at two of the hounds before giving up and grabbing her lightsaber. With a blood curdling scream, she charged forward with the crimson energy blade and began hacking and slashing at anything that got too close. It might have been a bloodbath if it weren't for the saber instantly cauterizing every wound she made.

The pack fell quickly. They fought viciously, pushing when a normal pack would have fallen back. It was as if they were mad, attacking without any care for caution or even death.

"Good workout." He looked over at the force sensitive woman. "Something very odd is going on here. Think those hounds were infected?"

She felt a little better after the dogs were dead, but the feeling didn't last. Arwen pointed her saber at his face, letting sit just inches from his nose. "Don't ask stupid questions." She replied.

He grinned, closer to a baring of his teeth than anything. The lightsaber dropped, part of him disappointed he couldn't just fight her. It would be thrilling, especially since he knew she wouldn't stop until he was dead.

Forcing himself back on task he silently trod further into the forest. Suppressing the itching feeling over his skin, a life long skill from years of working on holding onto his temper when losing it could kill him, he worked to find any traces of people other than himself and the far too testy soldier behind him. He had a job, once it was complete he could fight her.

Kath hounds attacked them a couple more times, but between his wish to hurry to fight Arwen and the mercenary's own temper they barely lasted. They finally found the bandit camp. Grinning Canderous quickly checked his gun, making sure he had a full charge. He looked to Arwen to take the lead, before firing at anyone he could get.

"I seriously love this thing." Arwen whispered to herself as they approached the bandit camp. She had completely ignored her blaster at this point. Murder was written all over her face. She charged forward with a cry, leaping headlong into the fray and decapitating a bandit before he even realized what hit him.

The camp was cleaned out quickly and efficiently. Canderous began to loot what was left, checking if there were any worthwhile weapons, stripping credit strips, and poking around the camp. "Think we should bring the scalps back as proof?" The mandalorian chuckled in amusement at the thought.

Arwen tossed Canderous a head. He kind of looked like he might have been a leader, but she really didn't know or care for that matter. "There's your proof." She said as she continued to loot. Arwen wasn't as thorough as she normally liked to be. If anything, she was rushing, just trying to get the job done as quickly as possible so that they could leave.

He accepted the head, using rope to strap it to one of the belts of his armor. "Alright, let's go get our money...and get out of this creepy area."

"Agreed." Arwen led the way, power walking out of the canyon as fast as she could without actually running. Getting out of the canyon was like a breath of fresh air. Her blood pressure steadily dropped and she relaxed a little.

Canderous watched as Arwen returned to normal, and glanced over his shoulder at the canyon. "Think something's poisoning the air there or something?"

"Or something is about right."

Canderous shrugged. "Not our problem." Long as they didn't have to take trips into it again. Or if they were paid to, maybe wear armor to filter the air. Pushing that aside they returned to the jedi compound where the man eagerly paid them. He seemed less than pleased to be given the head, but the mandalorian was simply satisfied with the pay and work. He grinned at Arwen.

"Up for a spar?"

Arwen yawned and stretched. "Nah. I think I'm gonna call it a day. Mass murder always makes me thirsty. Wouldn't mind a drinking buddy though. Wanna see what poor excuse for a bar the jedi have?"

Canderous chuckled. "Sounds like a great idea." Amiably the large mandalorian followed the mercenary through the compound, experienced eyes quickly picking out what should have been a bar-were it not so clearly serving tea.

"...Right, I'm leaving."

Arwen stared dumbly at the tea shop. "Fucking Jedi."

* * *

Bastila held herself still, listening as the Council argued over what to do with Arwen.

"We need her to train. She could be the key to defeating Malak!" Master Dorak said.

"We need to kill her before she turns sith, that's what we need to do. This whole idea is risky. We could be creating another sith lord, one even worse than Revan!" Master Vrook grumbled.

"Test her, we will," Master Vandar suggested.

"How do you suggest that?" Master Zhar asked.

"Bring in the lost one from the canyon," Master Vandar answered. The council fell silent, considering his words.

"Jedi Bastila. Will you escort her there?" Master Dorak asked. Bastila bowed her head.

"As the Council wishes."

Dismissed she left, thinking about the difficulty of the task. If Arwen failed in this, she truly would be considered too dangerous to leave alive. A force user that could easily turn sith was too dangerous to leave alone in these times, especially-

Bastila stopped her thoughts, and focused on following the link between her and the other woman. It left the jedi compound, a fact Bastila viewed with distaste. Why would anyone want to leave the peace of it? Even worse, the trail meandered down to the market, where a wobbly stand served drinks. The mandalorian was there, happily taking shots and competing for who could drink the most. Surely she was in the wrong place. Surely the mercenary wasn't there…

"How big?" Arwen laughed, lifting her drink with a huge smile on her face. The farmer next to her gestured to his chest, acting as if he were holding giant melons and Arwen laughed even harder. "That's fantastic!"

"I think they made my wife jealous." The farmer replied with a semi-toothy grin. Only semi since he was missing several teeth. "I offered to give her the rinds, but she wasn't too happy with that."

"Hey, shape 'em right and you could give yourself a nice bulge." The farmer laughed and Arwen downed the rest of her drink.

Oh Force, she was there. Bastila dragged herself reluctantly to Arwen's side, and coughed politely.

"Ahem."

Arwen ignored her. The farmer straightened up a little and gave a soft cough. Arwen ignored that too. "Hey! Another round." She called to the server.

"Soldier Fahey," Bastila commanded.

"Oh, look, it's the cultist. Back from your meeting so soon?" Arwen replied with bitter sarcasm.

Bastila straightened. "I am a jedi knight. I am worth your respect."

"Like I said, cultist." Arwen tapped the stall a couple of times. "If it makes you feel better, I don't respect anyone. Well, except maybe Canderous's cock."

The farmers shifted uneasily, the bartender focusing on thoroughly cleaning a glass. Canderous barked with laughter, throwing an arm around Arwen. "That eager for another round? Always up for a good time with a friend!" He winked. Bastila stared in shock.

"That is not appropriate behavior!" she exclaimed.

"Yeah, you're right," Canderous said solemnly. He straightened. "Appropriate behavior would be drinking to Revan! The best warrior your lot ever spawned!"

Arwen snoted. Her shoulders shuddered as she tried and failed to suppress her incessant giggles. "Better yet, a good fuck to honor him." Arwen glanced at the Jedi and snickered. "Hey, if you join us you might just lose that stick up your ass." The idea of doing it with a Jedi or a Sith was revolting, but anything to make Bastila squirm.

Canderous almost fell over laughing at that one. Bastila stared at them. For a long moment her mouth flapped uselessly, unable to find any words to speak.

At last, she forced out some words. "The council has agreed on a task for you to perform before granting you permission to leave Dantooine. I am to accompany you to the south canyons, and help you purify the source polluting the grove."

"No." Arwen replied flatly.

Bastila flinched, hard. She doubted Arwen understood what refusing this assignment meant. At least she hoped Arwen didn't understand. "You must take this assignment." Please, let her not be as stubborn and prideful as she was earlier.

"Nope." Arwen said, popping the p.

She really didn't understand. Bastila breathed carefully. "I don't believe you understand. Those able to connect with the Force are unique. Your gifts must be cultivated. Your refusal to take lessons has made this difficult. If you truly wish to turn it down you must prove that you can be trusted with your gift."

"Why?" Arwen glared at Bastila. "No, don't tell me that it's because you lot want to make sure some bullshit thing or another. Why should I care if you trust me? Why should I care about the jedi at all? More importantly, what makes you think I'm going to be a good little yes man and just agree to your arbitrary assignment; especially when it involves going into that canyon? Which, for the record, sucks!"

Bastila drew herself up. "This planet is under our jurisdiction," Bastila stated. No one came or left without the jedi council's permission. Granted, the jedi were rather peaceful and rarely took advantage of that, but they were using that power now. "Would you be more comfortable facing the canyon after some training?"

"And I'm a mercenary with a bad attitude and a general distaste for authority." Arwen paid and got up to leave. She started to go when an idea popped into her mind. Maybe the 'canyon made me do it' was a legit enough excuse to get rid of the Jedi once and for all. Then again… all she really had to do was abscond off the planet to achieve the same effect. The jedi might control it, but they didn't control the wallets of the travelers or their cargo holds. Arwen bit her lip and wrestled with her desires. She had a contract that promised good pay. Leaving would mean giving that up. Staying was just going to bring her one step closer to murdering Bastila. Then again… she really didn't want to repeat the canyon.

"Training isn't the issue here. I'm not going to do jack just because you or your Jedi buddies say so. Like I said, not a yes man."

"Then...you must have your powers stripped," Bastila intoned coldly.

Arwen glared at Bastilla. She stepped right up to the Jedi and stopped so that their bodies were less than an inch from one another.

"Try me." She spat. Arwen stepped back and held her hands out to each side in a challenge. "Cus I don't think you can. Even if you could… well, let's take a hypothetical walk down that road, shall we? All this training and tests and bullshit; it's because for some stupid reason, you lot think I'm gonna go darkside. You ever heard of a self-fulfilling prophecy? I'm a mercenary, I don't do dark side. I don't do light. I take a job, I get paid. I don't care who or why. Good or bad, doesn't matter to me. But then you lot show up all high and mighty, demanding that I do whatever the hell you circus monkeys want me to do just because you think you're entitled to it. News flash, you ain't. Get your heads out of your own asses. I have every right to refuse. Just as I have every right to terminate any contract with the understanding that I don't get paid for the job. So go ahead. Threaten me. Give me an ultimatum and you'll get to learn first hand just how resourceful I am."

Arwen took a few more steps back and shrugged. "Sure, maybe you get what you want. But I wonder how many bodies will drop or end up in the hospital before you're through. You want something from me, come down to my level first Jedi."

The fear in the young jedi's face was obvious now. She was terrified of the mercenary. Canderous just chuckled.

"I'd pay to see that show," he purred.

Bracing herself Bastila straightened up. "It-the force-it's more than that. It amplifies. If you do not get control you will fall. No choice."

"Twenty-five years and I'm doing fine." Arwen pulled out the lightsaber and flipped the handle once just to show off. "Better than fine." She purred. The fear in the Jedi's eyes was so much fun. Especially since it was so unexpected. Arwen expected anger or her to concede; this was a lot better.

Bastila paused, studying the mercenary. The lightsaber held her eyes captive, flashing back to facing Revan. She swallowed. "Your...your force sensitivity only came out after being in contact with a force user. It's relatively new."

"Yeah, I wonder about that..." Arwen meant to say it to herself, but it came out a little louder than she intended. A frown crossed her face and she quickly scratched at the base of her skull.

Calming Bastila smiled. "This is why we're here. To help you with your new abilities, before you cause harm."

Arwen cocked an eyebrow at the Jedi. She tossed an 'is she serious' look at Canderous. "What exactly do you think I do?"

"This...this is different. On a whole other scale. You've seen what the sith can do, and there were only two when they first came back."

"Is every conversation I have with you gonna be circular. You've been down this road. Finish it yourself." Arwen sashayed towards Canderous. "Shall we go somewhere else?"

Canderous leered at Arwen, hand tracing his gun. "Care to test out that fancy weapon of yours?"

Her eyes glittered. "Oh yeah!"


	9. A Teacher

Mandalor, she was a beautiful woman. Fought like an angel of death, and screwed like a beast. The way she'd moved in that fight? If he hadn't known better he would have sworn he was seeing a fully trained sith lord in front of her, the way she swung that lightsaber.

His gun had been destroyed, but they hadn't been truly trying to kill each other, just maim, and that just gave him an excuse to get up close and personal. She'd been more than welcoming then, too.

He had started checking over his weapons once they were done, not tired enough to sleep. Perhaps not the best etiquette, but since when did either of them care about that? They were rude, crude, and blunt to a fault. She wouldn't care.

"So...need help getting off planet? Or d'ya want me to check out that canyon for ya, since I ain't sensitive to it like you force users?"

Arwen laid back in bed, satisfied on every count. She rested on top of the sheets, completely naked and totally without modesty. Arwen tipped back her personal flask and sighed. Unfortunately, Canderous's question killed her buzz slightly. She rolled over and hummed at him thoughtfully.

"As much as I'd like to get out of this hell-hole, I do have to wonder what the big deal is about that canyon. Why bother trying to get me there? I don't really give two craps about what's going on in there, but knowing their reasoning would help me predict them better. Just in case I need option one."

With that, Arwen stretched and started to collect her belongings. They were strewn haphazardly throughout the room. Even if she wasn't going to put them on, she at least wanted them all in one convenient location. "Don't tell anyone this, but I don't actually want to pick a fight with the council. Well… at least not a battle anyways. It's not one I can win. I just don't like them. Small verbal bouts, yes. Fists and lightsabers? No, thank you. Running is better for long term survival."

"They are rather invested in you." Canderous paused, wondering if he should push the issue. He arched a brow as she spoke about running from the council. "After seeing the way you fight, you expect me to believe some old men could face you in battle?"

"Yeah, but it's as I said to Bastilla; I might win, but not without taking damage. They've got the numbers." Arwen sighed. "It really is fun to mess with them though. Did you see the look on her face?" Arwen barked with laughter.

Canderous chuckled. "You terrify her."

"I know!" Arwen got up and gave Canderous a peck on the cheek. "You seem to know the best way to cheer me up. Can I keep you?"

Canderous chuckled. "I'm not one to be tied down, darling."

"Aw, but you'd look so cute in a collar and chains." Arwen replied. She tapped him on the cheek lightly with her fingers and decided it was time to get dressed.

Canderous admired the view for a moment before beginning to grab his own clothes. The mandalorian made sure each weapon was secured before he finally felt ready to head out. He was a man of war after all. One of the few that thrived in it, and missed it when it was gone.

Arwen waited long enough for him to get ready. She fished into her pockets and pulled out a few credits. "Here. I expect my money's worth."

Canderous took the credits and tipped his head. "A pleasure doing business with you." He was looking forward to this. The aggression of the canyon drew him, and he wouldn't have to worry about Arwen going nuts and attacking him this time. Grabbing Arwen for one last kiss and grope he headed for the door. He wanted to buy some more equipment before dealing with force craziness.

He didn't get why force users were so tetchy about the canyon. He hadn't felt this great since the war! Canderous wiped a bloody hand over his face, ignoring the dirty smears it left behind. The creatures were ferocious. It had been a glorious one man battle to get through to the heart. Whatever it was that was there, it would be fascinating to discover.

Canderous froze as he pushed back that last branch and found a jedi. Cursing he retreated and called Arwen up.

"Hello, you've reached the supreme ruler of the Galaxy. What pleasure do you have to offer me?" Arwen chimed happily when she answered the call. She had just stepped out of the bathtub and was enjoy pampering her nails. Since Canderous was doing all the legwork for her, she saw no reason not to enjoy the rare moment of relaxation.

"Found out why the jedi are tetchy about the canyon," Canderous bit out, "A force user, can't be older than twenty, set up camp there."

"A force user..." Arwen thought about it for a second. "I think this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship. See if they'd like to meet me with me. If no, tie them up and I'll come meet you… outside the canyon."

Canderous grinned. "Agreed." Dragging the force user out would be difficult, as whatever was affecting Arwen was probably something the trained cathar tapped into and used. Still, he was always up for a challenge. He closed the comm.

The feline woman focused on the mandalorian as soon as he stepped towards her.

"Someone sent to kill me?" she purred. Her eyes gleamed a sickly yellow, staring at Canderous. "I can assure you, you will not succeed!"

Canderous held his hands up, displaying them free of weapons. "Easy, now. Much as I'd love to fight you, I have a different reason for coming here."

Her ears twitched, but she didn't attack him, so Canderous decided to take it as a good sign.

"An acquaintance of mine has recently discovered force powers of her own."

"And why does this concern me?" the force user snapped.

"She has disagreements with the jedi. She's hoping you'd be willing to help her."

She purred. If she'd had a tail Canderous was sure it would have been swaying with pleasure. "An apprentice of my own...that could be rather pleasurable." Her eyes shot back to Canderous, piercing into him. "If this is a lie, you will pay for it, merc."

Canderous grinned. "Looking forward to it." The cathar crossed over to him, her feline roots showing clearly in her movement. It seemed someone had let their more base instincts take control while they were out here.

"Lead the way." He turned around and began to push back through the forest. It was different with the force user at his back. Occasionally kath hounds and other creatures would come out, but a simple wave from the cathar he was escorting would send them back into the forest. He wasn't sure if this meant she was powerful, or simply something any trained force user could do. Either way it meant he exited the canyon faster than he'd entered.

Spotting Arwen up ahead he waved for the cathar to stand with him. "My client, Arwen Fahey."

Arwen waited outside of the canyon for Canderous. She was absolutely against reentering the cursed place, but trying to meet back at the ships was just asking for trouble. This wasn't something she wanted the Jedi to know about. Especially since it would likely give her a hidden card to play, no matter the outcome. She was practically patting herself on the back by the time Canderous turned up. Arwen straightened herself and casually rested her hand her hip, just above her stolen lightsaber. She gave a quick wave to the mercenary.

"A pleasure." Arwen replied, offering her hand to the cathar.

The cathar stalked forward and looked over Arwen, measuring the mercenary. She grasped her hand, claws pulled in neatly. "Juhani," she purred, "You are to be my apprentice?"

"Maybe." Arwen replied smoothly. "Consider this a job interview. The canyon, that you?"

"Yes." Juhani lifted her head proudly. "The canyon resonates with the force. It carried my spirit well."

"Nice. You do that on my ship and I'll remove your spirit the hard way." Arwen pulled a hidden flask out and took a quick swig. She held the container out, offering a drink to Juhani. "Where'd you learn?"

The cathar bristled. She shook her head at the offered alcohol, a low resonance of anger building around her. "The jedi taught me, but they were quick to attempt to restrain my passions."

Arwen nodded. "Yeah, I bet they did. Bunch of cultists if you ask me." She took another swig and offered it to Canderous. "How far'd you get?"

Canderous happily accepted the drink. Juhani relaxed slightly, though her eyes still reflected a layer of suspicion.

"I would have graduated from my apprenticeship had I not turned from them."

"So far enough to teach. How long ago? Actually, no, better question; do they know you're still here?"

She drew herself up proudly. "I have no reason to hide my presence from such cowards."

"Doesn't answer my question." Arwen replied.

"They know I'm here. They would have to be blind to not notice my presence within the canyon."

Arwen frowned. So what exactly was the point of them trying to get her to take care of the canyon if they knew the cause? What, did they want to see if she could figure it out on her own? It was a test, so maybe they wanted to see if Arwen would kill Juhani. The more she thought about it, the more pissed she got.

"Awesome." Arwen replied, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "You've got the job. I have a contract with the Republic, but if you want to ditch the planet I don't mind voiding it."

"Perfect." Juhani practically purred over the word, her eyes half closed as she studied the woman before her. A fiery sensation ran briefly over Arwen, tastes of rage and grief in it before it withdrew. "You have...more control than I would expect considering your power."

Arwen shuddered. "Don't. Do. That." she warned. A part of her was still testy and not really willing to just take Juhani's compliment. "Really? Because literally no one has said that to me ever. I'm kind of known for losing control. That and an unhealthy obsession with grenades."

Juhani tilted her head. "You do not use your powers in such a way?" Using the force as an extra sense to tell about the world was habitual. Juhani hadn't even thought about the possibility of someone disliking it. "Well, you will learn. And yes, your control is exceptional. Considering your power levels you should be subconsciously influencing everything around you. Instead it is bound to you, contained."

"Frankly, didn't even know I had them until a couple days ago." Arwen shrugged. "This is all news to me."

The cathar's eyes widened even further. "Did-did not know?" She subsided into muttering in her native tongue. Canderous side eyed the force user, and sidled over to Arwen. "Sure she's sane enough to teach ya?"

"If she's not, we can always gank her later." Arwen whispered back. "Besides, I'll take an insane Cathar over a Jedi or Sith any day."

Canderous nodded. "Well, shall we head back to quarters?" Juhani stilled.

"I will not return to the jedi," she stated flatly. Canderous snorted.

"We don't work with the jedi, sweetheart. Just mercs doing our jobs." The cathar growled, eyeing them suspiciously.

"You don't have to stay with us if you don't want to." said Arwen. "Just so long as we have a way to contact you easily and vice versa. I do want to meet every day at least. The sooner I get a handle on this force shit, the better. Plus there are a few things I want to go over with you."

Juhani shrugged, and nodded. "Very well. We'll meet at dawn tomorrow for your first session."

"Sounds fair." Arwen waved at Juhani and started to walk off. She paused. "See you tomorrow Teach." With that, Arwen left.

Have to hurry, have to find it. No one believes them, but it's there, beyond known space. They slide quietly through the canyon, cloaking their presence. Difficult to believe they were once padawans here, training together. Now they are risking parole, perhaps even being stripped of their connection of the force. Poor Meetra had only followed them, and had lost everything.

"You sure it's here?" Malak asked. Revan nodded grimly. "The ruins could contain anything, you know how ancient they are," Malak pushed. The heavy stare beneath Revan's mask is palpable. "Alright. I trust you Revan." The pair halted before a door. Revan studied it carefully, before waving his hand. He pulsed his power, carefully tapping the triggers. An ancient heavy power pulsed back once, and the stone door slid open.

"We're never going back now," Malak muttered.

Arwen bolted upright. Sweat dripped down her brow and body. She reached over and grabbed a flask, taking a big pull from it. The sweet liquor soothed her fried nerves. She tossed the empty flask across the room and cursed. That bitch Bastila was watching her dreams again. Not that she understood them.

Sill frustrated, Arwen marched her way to the shower and quickly washed off. There was no light outside her window, but the time of the clock said she didn't have long before sunrise. She didn't linger. Arwen was ready soon enough and on her way to meet Juhani outside of the canyon. Aside from her usual trappings, Arwen also grabbed a second communicator so that she could keep in contact with her new teacher.

The sun was barely halfway over the horizon by the time she arrived. Arwen took care to make sure that no one was following her. Although she doubted it would take the Jedi long to find out what she was up too, Arwen wanted to put that conversation off for as long as possible. The more training she earned, the easier it would be to keep abreast of their influence. Afterall, Arwen still had no plans to play nice.

Juhani was kneeling in meditation when Arwen arrived where they had met. Without even opening her eyes she spoke.

"Welcome. Please, sit. Your first lesson will be listening to the force inside of you."

Arwen settled down in front of Juhani, swallowing the sarcastic comment that she really wanted to whip out. Maybe tomorrow.

"Before the lesson, I gotta fill you in on some things." Arwen explained as much as she could understand to Juhani. She told her new teacher about the strange link between her and Bastila, as well as how invasive and unwelcome the damned thing was. Arwen told her about the incident with the Sith, how she managed to push past the force users influence on what basically amounted to instinct. It was also why her lightsaber was a bright, sith red. Arwen told Juhani about the strange dreams she had, how they basically meant nothing to her and how she'd really rather they stopped.

"Look, I know you ain't fond of the Jedi so I'll say this. To me, the Jedi and the Sith are equal. Both royally suck and I want nothing to do with either of them. It's why I came to you."

Juhani simply listened at first, but her eyes opened quickly as the unusual circumstances were laid out before her. She turned to stare at her new student. Part of her wanted to use the force to immediately check the truthfulness of the statement, but the odd link with Jedi Bastila certainly explained Arwen's touchiness about others sensing her. It would make it more difficult to ascertain the nature of things.

"Well," Juhani breathed, "you certainly are… unusual." She shifted uneasily, suddenly feeling as if the ground had dropped out below her. She could teach force basics certainly, and guide Arwen in how to use them, but the more complex force entanglements Arwen described? The cathar certainly didn't know how to handle that.

"It sounds… as if the force has chosen you," Juhani murmured uncertainly, "That there is something it desires for you to do, that it believes you would choose if you had the knowledge. I am uncertain what it means."

"Yeah, well, it can go choose someone the fuck else." Arwen spat. She wanted to say more, a lot more. Instead, she added, "Let's get through this touchy feely bullshit so I can start chucking buckets at people's heads with my mind."

Juhani tilted her mind. "Do you understand what the Force is?"

"Magic space voodoo?"

Juhani stared. "For someone so gifted, your ignorance is astounding."

"Oh, I'm just getting warmed up." Arwen smirked playfully. So much for no snark. She tried. She failed. She moved on.

Juhani grinned back, a surprisingly fierce look considering the warm nature. Most likely because it was so very obvious her species were predators when her fangs were visible.

"The Force is the source of life. Everything is made up of it. Most cannot touch it, not sensitive enough to it. A rare few however, are gifted enough to be able to actually sense this energy, and manipulate it. We simply seem as large in number as we are due to how many places we are able to look for those sensitive."

"The Force being basically life means it is not truly a guiding force, or a god, as the Jedi teach. It can show possible futures, as the energy flows in the most probable direction, but it represents the desires of the life around it. Simply look at the canyon. Before I was there, it was considered a pure place, one the jedi held sacred. My mere presence in it, a strong conscious user of the force, had the entire canyon following my will." Juhani looked to see if Arwen was following.

"So… basically magic space voodoo."

Juhani's lips pulled back in distaste. "The force is not some superstition," she hissed.

"Neither is voodoo." Arwen replied straight faced.

The cathar tilted her head, not entirely sure how to respond to that. "Well...as long as you understand. The force chooses those that are receptive to it. You are sensitive and powerful enough that it seems the force has a great deal of knowledge for you. I am...unsure of Jedi Bastila's connection."

Shaking herself Juhani returned to her meditative pose. "Now, as the force is life, sensing that life is the first step in grasping it, and bringing it to your will."

"Alright…" Arwen shifted so that she could mimic Juhani's pose. "So how the hell am I supposed to do that?"

Juhani reached with the force, brushing against Arwen. "Feel this?"

Arwen reflexively tried to punch whatever was brushing her, but all she got was air. Her temper rose and settled for punching the ground and glaring at Juhani. "Don't do that!"

Juhani met her gaze steadily. "You must trust me if you are to learn. I can show you how to sense it, but it will require contact through the force."

"Fine." Arwen replied through clenched teeth. Force users really needed to learn the definition of personal space.

Juhani frowned. Reaching towards Arwen more aggressively this time with her powers she forcefully prodded the tightly coiled pool of power, breaching the barrier keeping it contained.

Arwen gasped. The sudden awareness of not just Juhani's prodding, but something within her was overwhelming. Arwen doubled over. Her hand clawed at her chest. What is that? What IS that!

Juhani smirked, cruelty glinting in her eyes. She expanded her own sense of power, knowing that the new force user would be able to sense her now.

Strangely, it didn't have the effect Juhani had expected. Most after having their aura forcefully drawn out that way would have latched onto the first person that showed control as a way to receive help. Yet even with her force powers awoken it was surprisingly in control.

It was as if someone had flipped her upside down and she could figure out how to right herself. Actually, no, it was more like she had spent her entire life upside down and was suddenly rightside up for the first time. Arwen leaned forward more, clutching her chest harder as her forehead hovered barely an inch above the soil. She felt a tiny, silent will in her head. It pushed her this way and that, wordlessly whispering something she couldn't comprehend. Juhani had let it out of its box. All she wanted to do was put it back.

"Shut up." she growled softly. "Shut up, shut up, SHUTUP!"

Now that was turbulent. It was beautiful, the way Arwen's rage colored the force. The grass began to die beneath her. Juhani chuckled, and concentrated on sending a soothing sensation out to quiet her student.

"This is what the jedi wield. This is what I have sensed from the moment I met you. You could conquer the galaxy with such power," Juhani purred.

Arwen remained coiled, but she couldn't resist the calm. Her breath evened. The grip on her chest relaxed. Arwen let her head drop onto the ground. "Galaxy is too much work." Arwen managed. "Can I conquer a beer instead?" With that, Arwen grabbed her flask and started to drink.

Juhani laughed. "It's in your hands. I am merely your teacher." With a gesture she moved the flask away. "Now, take it back."

Frowning, Arwen leaned back, letting her palms take her weight as she studied Juhani. In one sudden motion, Arwen chucked a couple of pebbles at Juhani with one hand and made to snatch the flask with the other.

Juhani laughed, freezing the pebbles in the air and levitating the flask further out. "Not like that. You can feel the force now. You are not its slave. Master it, grasp it, and take the flask."

With a sigh, Arwen relented. She glared at the flask. "C'me 'ere boy." She whistled. Nothing. That voiceless whisper came back, prodding her like a kid with a stick. Arwen tried to ignore it, but it just got worse. "Shut up." she growled again. The feeling got worse until she wanted to just explode. Her frustration turned to rage. She grabbed onto the flask through the force and chucked it as far away as she could possibly manage, just to spite that feeling. Although, now she was down a flask.

Juhani arched a brow. "Well, that's one way of doing it." She laughed.

"I'm… gonna go get it..." Arwen stood and marched over to where the flask landed.


	10. The Ruins

Learning how to use the force should have been easy. She had plenty of power, and it was eager to obey her. It would have been easier if she hadn't fought it. It felt like an intruder, and Juhani's harsh lessons about how it was a part of her didn't make it easier to accept. At least Juhani wasn't as stuck up as the jedi, despite her obvious temple upbringing. She accepted the barbs Arwen flung at her with a fair amount of grace. Well, if their sniping and Juhani's casual use of the force to hurt Arwen could be considered graceful.

The worst part really, were the dreams. Whatever she was taught about she dreamed of the jedi doing at night. It almost felt as if the force was trying to make up for the gaps in her memories by flooding her with what could have been if the jedi had trained her-an idea that twisted bitterly inside her. At least Canderous was there. He made a great sparring partner, bloodthirsty and eager to test himself against her powers. He was an eager mate in bed as well.

The repeating dream about the ruins was annoying as well. Apparently Bastila and the council were trying to get in, and every time their little expedition failed Arwen got to have a rerun of Malak and Revan visiting it. Juhani's answer about the force believing that Arwen would want whatever was in there was annoying, especially since she could feel Bastila in the dream every. single. Time. At least she could annoy Carth by flicking things at him.

Her skill with the force picked up speed when she finally stopped resisting. Juhani was shocked at the speed, muttering about how it was as if Arwen had been born to wield the force in such a way. It was almost unnatural, the way years worth of training went by in a couple of months. She had all the skill of a talented jedi knight in the end.

Arwen woke extra early that morning. She had finally managed to get her hands on some new dyes. That and she desperately needed to cut it. It was practically off her shoulders at this point. The original black color was plainly visible for all to see. Thankfully, all was rectified by the time she stepped out of the shower. The mercenary donned her usual garb, feeling actually cheery for once despite the idiotic dreams. She had finally given up on ignoring the cave. Invites were open to Juhani and Canderous to come with, although she had a sneaking suspicion Carth might try to weasel his way in. Not that she'd mind. Chucking pebbles at his head via the force was practically an olympic sport for her at this point. She'd gotten a nice trick shot on him the night before.

The morning air was crisp and biting as she stepped outside the ship. Her breath came in visible waves. Arwen ran a hand through her sith red and jedi blue locks. Not a single hair went past the base of her neck. Just the way she liked it.

Carth had been tinkering below the ship when he spotted Arwen coming out. He actually wasn't sure what the mercenary had been doing for the past month. He knew that the jedi wanted something with her, and she had them as stirred up as a kicked hornet's nest, but Arwen's words about how trustworthy the jedi were hadn't left him. Though really, he could do without her chucking stuff at him. She learns how to use the force, and how does she use it? To annoy him. He'd thought the jedi would have instilled at least some discipline in her.

She didn't look like she was heading for training this morning though. "Something different happening today?"

"No." Arwen replied. "Same old, same old. No amount of booze will make me forget it either. So I'm just gonna go deal with the problem." Arwen pointed to her belt which was fit with about a dozen grenades. "One way or another."

Carth stilled. "...need some help with that?"

Arwen figured as much. The jedi were watching her, she knew that. Carth was their bitch (or so she assumed). It figures he'd be in charge of keeping an eye on her. "Not really. Follow, don't. I don't care."

Carth eyed Arwen suspiciously, but nodded. He cleaned his hands on a rag and headed inside to grab his blasters, and as much weaponry as he could hide on his body. This already promised to start heading south.

He glanced up as the mandalorian entered the room, his monstrous gun strapped to his back. "Ho, got a good fight planned today?" Canderous asked.

Carth snorted. "Not all of us are battle hungry mandalorians."

"Then it's a peace talk you're taking all that weaponry to?" Canderous asked sarcastically.

"I wish. Arwen's planning something. She's got enough grenades on her to destroy a small village. With her luck she'll encounter something that actually requires them."

Canderous raised his brows. "You almost sound concerned."

"I don't like her. That doesn't mean I want her dead-or for whatever trouble she's gonna stir up to tear up the planet."

Canderous chuckled. "I can respect that." The two men exited the ship, Canderous whistling in admiration at Arwen.

"Good morning sexy!"

"You know it." Arwen replied with a wink. "Ready to head out?"

"Eager for it." Carth glanced at Canderous. "You know what she's planning?"

"Of course! Hoping there'll be something there to fight. Perhaps Revan left a surprise behind." Canderous grinned, his bloodlust clear.

Arwen frowned. She wanted less to do with the Jedi and the Sith, not more. In all honesty, she just wanted the cave to be empty, or at least hold nothing that would actually interest her. The whole point of this trip was to stop the dreams. Arwen turned and headed out to the canyon. Juhani was going to meet them there like always. From there, it was off to the ruins.

The cathar greeted the group coolly and slipped in, ignoring the bickering pair. Carth examined the obvious force user with suspicion. She looked like a jedi, but Arwen was awfully accepting of her if she was one. The walk through the canyon was auspicious, the creatures still obedient and recognizing the presence of the woman whose influence had reigned for so long. They reached the ruins, Canderous disappointed he hadn't managed to bag anything on their way in.

"How was it opened in your dreams?" Juhani asked softly.

Carth choked. "You-you dreamed this?"

"Hand wavy space magic." Arwen replied, ignoring Carth. "No, literally, he waved his hand. Opening some kind of internal mechanism."

"A force responsive door? Interesting…" Juhani waved her hand, her force presence tickling briefly across it. The door stayed shut. "Hm...do you know how the force interacted with the door?"

"Fuck it. It'll be faster if I just do it. Besides, I always have my grenades." Arwen raised her hand towards the door and the strangest sense of deja vu flashed across her mind. She shook her head and concentrated on the feeling from her dream.

The door slowly rose up. The group walked in, Carth tense. The stone lobby they entered might have once been beautiful, but the murals carved on the walls were now so faded to no more than faint imprints. Juhani took the lead into a room with an ancient droid.

Why have slaves of the Builders come? The droid's words were grating, a harsh ancient dialect.

"What is it saying?" Carth asked.

"I am unsure. I do not recognize the language," Juhani answered.

Arwen looked at Carth and Juhani like they had grown another head. "Seriously? I thought 'slaves of the builders' was pretty clear." she rolled her eyes. Suddenly, a searing pain shot through her head. Flashes of herself in dark clothes and a mask running through the ruins, speaking to the droid. Arwen stumbled, gripping her head tight as the memory fled as quickly as it came.

"Arwen!" They all rushed to the mercenary, worry sketched in their faces.

"I felt your force presence spike rather painfully, as if tearing something. What happened?" Juhani demanded.

Another flash. She was worried about something. Something bad would happen if… if… Pain flared and Arwen snarled. She couldn't remember what! All she had was the impression of her looking at a map of the stars. Why? Arwen shoved her fist into her mouth and bit, hard. The pain died down a little bit, but she was breathing and sweating like she had just run a marathon. Carefully, Arwen pulled off a grenade with her free hand and darkly mumbled, "Die motherfucker."

Carth's eyes widened. "Whoa, whoa!" He grabbed the grenade and quickly wrestled it away. "What the hell?"

"I'm gonna blow this place to kingdom fucking come!" Arwen snarled and tried to wrestle her grenade back. "It deserves it!"

"Why'd you think that?" Carth demanded.

"Because I've been here before!" She screamed. Arwen tore herself away from the group and stormed outside. She grabbed one of her flasks and started to down it at record speed.

The group looked at each other awkwardly. Carth coughed into his hand. "I'll...I'll wait here." Canderous grunted and looked at Juhani, the young cathar looking slightly lost.

"It'd probably be best if you talked to her. We ain't got that sort of relationship."

Juhani straightened herself the best she could, and walked out to the drinking mercenary. "Arwen."

"What?" she snapped.

"Would...would you tell me what happened?"

"I don't even know!" Arwen threw her hands up into the air and started ranting. "I keep having these ridiculous dreams about a place that I've apparently been to but don't even remember, just like the rest of my miserable excuse for a life. It makes zero sense and I want nothing to do with it. Ever!"

Juhani's eyes widened. "You...you don't remember your past?"

"No." She spat bitterly. "I just woke up one day in the hospital. No one even cared. No friends. No family. Not even some mildly concerned coworker or boss. Just… fuck me. This is why I drink! If I'm going to have holes in my fucking memory it's because I fucking put them there!"

Juhani softened. "I apologize. If...if it helps at all, I believe the mandalorian cares for you...as do I. As your teacher, of course."

Arwen glared savagely at Juhani. She chucked the flask at her mentor as hard as she could. What little alcohol remained went flying. "I don't want your pity! What I want is to blow this place to a thousand little pieces and rip that nonsense spitting droid limb from limb. I'm not some fucking slave!"

Juhani glared sharply at Arwen and sent a sharp spark at Arwen. "I do not pity you! The lack of those that cared for you has been rectified, and you are my student. You are better than this! You do not bow to the jedi, or the sith! What do the words of an ancient droid weigh?"

"That hurt." She growled dangerously. Arwen would have pounded on Juhani if not for her speech. Instead, the mercenary just settling on glaring at everyone and everything. "Whatever. I came. I saw. I'm gone."

Juhani sighed and looked back at the ruins where the two guys were waiting. "We'll come back another time then." Whatever secrets the ruins held, it seemed it was more important to her student than she had thought. She'd imagined the ruins held power her student would crave, not memories from her past.

The cathar returned to the ruins. "Well?" Carth demanded, "Is she alright? What was that about?"

"She'll recover. It seems these ruins contains more secrets than we first thought." Juhani waved for them to follow, and the ruins closed behind them. Rather befuddled Carth sank into thought. It couldn't just be tied to the force. It hadn't affected Juhani after all. So what had caused her to act so weird?

Carth shot Arwen looks as they headed back to the jedi compound, the mercenary drinking like it had gone out of style. He almost spoke a few times, always falling silent. He headed to the ship to try and forget about the odd experience by tinkering, but he found himself hovering in the common room instead, staring at nothing. Canderous had long since peeled off to go do...whatever it was he did, and the cathar for whatever reason refused to enter the compound.


	11. Forgotten Memories

Arwen secluded herself in her room until the darkest part of the night. Once she was sure everyone was asleep, Arwen crept out of the ship. This time, she was bringing real explosives. It took a while to get to the canyon, especially since Arwen was doing her damndest to be sneaky about it. However, once she arrived, she made good time.

A shiver ran up her spine. Brief, momentary glimpses of the memories from before flashed through her head. Arwen shook them off and proceeded inside.

"Oy! Metalass! I have some questions for you." She snarled.

What does this one require? the ancient droid ground out.

"I was here before right? Why? What did I want?" Arwen snapped.

This one is not a Builder, the droid answered, [Two] prior visitations of non Builders recorded. [One] successful passing of trials, [One] death by trials.

"This is why I hate robots." Arwen gritted her teeth and took a deep breath. The hold on her bag of explosives tightened. Once she was done, she could blow this place to smithereens. "Trials? What trials?"

[Two] trials to access the heart of the temple. [One] must prove to be in tune with the Builders' will to pass.

"Right… did I pass the trial?" Arwen asked.

The droid's gears grounded. Data not found.

Arwen's temper flared. She pulled out her blaster and pointed it at the droid. It took everything she had not to shoot it. Arwen tapped her forehead with the butt of the gun and managed to put it away. "What's in the heart of the temple?"

Unknown. This processor was built to serve the Builders and guard the temple.

"Who passed the trial?"

The droid's gears ground even slower. [Two] non Builders entered. [One] asked intelligent questions. [Two] gained access to the heart of the temple.

Arwen stopped. "Okay. What questions did the first ask and what were their answers?"

What is this droid's purpose? This droid was programmed to serve should a Builder return in search of knowledge of the Star Forge. What is the Star Forge? The Star Forge is the glory of the Builders, the apex of their infinite empire. It is a machine of invincible might, a tool of unstoppable conquest. Who are the Builders? The Builders are the great masters of the galaxy, the conquerors of all worlds, the rulers of the infinite empire and the creators of the Star Forge. The empire of the Builders is infinite and ever lasting. None can stand against their might and the power of the Star Forge. Has a Builder been here recently? No Builders have come since the completion of this temple by the mark of [Ten] revolutions of the outer planet of this system. How can I prove myself worthy and earn knowledge of the Star Forge? Enter the proving grounds to the east and the west. Within them those who understand the will of the Builders can unlock their secrets and open the doors. Those who fail will be destroyed.

"Star Forge?" Arwen muttered. Was that what her memory was about. That thing that was bad news? Could she sell it? Probably no. Somehow, an invincible galaxy conquering machine seemed bad for business. Specifically, her business. "Is the Star Forge here, or is this place just a glorified encyclopedia?"

The key is within.

"Awesome. Is there anything else I should know?"

Those who fail will be destroyed.

"You already said that rust bucket." Arwen stepped up to the robot and patted it on its head. "Good robot." With that, she took out her lightsaber and cut the thing in half. "Why didn't I do this before? Kill the messenger. Duh."

Arwen glanced around. Other than the entrance she'd come through, there were three doors. The door just behind the droid practically screamed trap. It was gorgeous. A gilded flight of stairs to a pretty door. The other two were normal.

"East and West?" Arwen stepped over to the east door first. She stared at it for a moment before yanking it open, but not going through.

A dim light started up, illuminating an alcove. Two ancient droids began to power up, guns whirring as they searched for their target. Behind them an ancient terminal was visible.

Arwen slammed the door shot. She walked over to the other side of the main area and opened the West door.

An almost identical sight met her.

Arwen closed the door again. She stepped back into the sanctuary and started to pace. Should she try it? Arwen was absolutely going to blow the place to smithereens, but maybe it wouldn't hurt to find this Star Forge and blow that up too. Although, this path was seriously laden with memories and those were the last things Arwen wanted. She was probably the one who passed before. So, if she passed once, she could do it again right?

Frustrated Arwen stopped and concentrated. _Okay Force. Be my magic eight ball. Left, right, or kaboom?_

The force responded with a nudge to the left, and a faint echo of the surroundings. Whatever was behind the sealed door was waiting for her.

"Door number one. Got it." Arwen went over to the dead droid and focused on the chunk on the ground. She lifted it with the force and brought it over to the East door. With a grunt, Arwen heaved the door open and chucked the dead droid at one of its fellows. Next she jumped inside, lightsaber in hand.

The powered up droids immediately focused on the hunk of metal thrown at them and spewed fire at it. The heavily heated metal knocked the droid over, and it began to beep in consternation. The other turned and locked back onto the enemy, throwing fire to roast the enemy.

Arwen ducked back behind the door again. "Flamethrowers. It just had to be flamethrowers." Frustrated, she opened the door and concentrated on the standing droid, trying to toss it into the back wall, or at least turn it.

The droid screeched as it slammed into the back wall. Twitching sporadically it turned its head and spewed more fire, only for the flames to cut off. The droid churned its gears, and started again. The flames again flared out for a short time before vanishing.

Smiling, Arwen stepped back into the room. "What's a matter? Can't get it up?" She taunted as she tossed it against the wall again. "That sounds like a you problem."

The bot screeched wildly as it hit the wall. It spat its flames again, body beginning to twitch with the piling malfunctions.

Arwen tossed the robot around a few more times, chucking it into the other droids on several occasions just for fun. Forget the test, this was entertaining. Heck, she even started juggling the bots with the force for a bit. Finally, Arwen just crushed the thing.

"Well, that was fun while it lasted." she said to herself and stepped up to the terminal.

The terminal blinked, a single question on the screen: What brings forth life?

"Fucking and poor life choices… oh, and the Force I guess." Arwen figured the latter was what the terminal wanted, but the former was the real truth.

For a long moment the terminal processed her response, before finally clicking. The room darkened, and the terminal switched off.

"What? Is that it?" Arwen banged on the terminal with her fist. Frustrated she stomped out and went to the other door across the way, cursing under her breath and complaining about the idiotic tests. Arwen went into her bag, dug out one of the smaller charges, stormed over to the other door, and chucked it inside without even bothering to look

The explosion didn't sound.

Arwen glanced inside and glared at the charge. She reached out to it with the force to detonate it.

The ice around it shattered, but the resulting explosion was minor, and didn't even touch the droids watching for movement.

"Fine. If that's how you want to play." Arwen reached out with the force again to grab one droid and slam it into the other.

The droids screeched, one of them misfiring and freezing the other. The surviving droid swiveled around, searching for its opponent. It began to move closer to the entrance, occasionally firing an ice beam.

Arwen chuckled. Talk about therapeutic. She grabbed the remaining droid with the force and gave it the same fate as all its comrades, to be her personal wrecking ball.

Droids terminated Arwen walked over to the terminal.

What is the greatest cause of death?

"Me. Alcohol. Stupidity…" Arwen thought for a moment. "Star Forge if someone ever fucking finds it. Not that they will. Not after I'm through with it."

The terminal processed her answer faster this time, before again clicking and turning itself off. The room darkened, and the sound of the sealed door opening could be heard in the main chamber.

Arwen stared at the terminal for a minute. "I am so burning this place to the ground." She stepped out and headed up the stairs. A part of her still thought it was a trap. Never go for the shiny doors. That's what the stories always said. Still, she opened the door and looked inside.

The same dusty grey stone marked the walls, but it was even larger, decorative columns with some sort of...it wasn't entirely clear what it was, but it was clearly held in awe. In the very back, up on a pedestal, an old space map activated, an incomplete path through the stars opening up.

 _She stepped forward, her closest friend right on her heels. He was the only one she could trust with what had to be done. Bitter she almost wished she'd never realized there was more to the war than anyone had realized. Never discovered that there was something beyond known space preparing to take it back._

 _The ruins were old enough. This could lead them to the answer. All they had to do was find the Star Forge, and they would find whoever was threatening to destroy them._

Arwen cried out. Her hand went to her head as she doubled over. More memories. More visions from the past that she didn't want! Her head shook as she tried to clear them. War? What was the point of all this. Arwen curled into a ball, putting her head between her knees as she tried to clear her mind. Slowly, she rocked back and forth, both hands digging into the back of her head.

"I can't wait to blow this place up." she snarled. Arwen managed to get to her feet. She made her way over to the map and took several detailed photos of it; enough so that she'd have a reference for later. Arwen stood back and cleared her throat.

"Hello? Any ancient devices here? Recordings of old sages? Any other such nonsense?"

Carth walked into the room, the soldier leaning against a nearby wall. "You really think something's gonna pop up just cause you tell it to?"

Arwen grabbed her blaster and spun on her heels, aiming the nose of the gun at the intruder. Her finger was a hair's breadth off the trigger.

"Carth?" Arwen heaved a sigh and hoved the blaster back into her belt. "I knew you were my stalker." she quipped. "Knock next time. Oh, and also, you can't be here. Challenge winners only. There are four death robots you have to get through first. Come back after they blast a few new holes in you."

Carth stared at her. "You snuck off in the middle of the night. Of course I was going to follow you. Good thing too, considering." He ignored the last bit, and stared around the room. Nothing appeared that seemed too dangerous…

"Anything I need to worry about?"

"Considering what? That your jedi buddies asked you to keep an eye on me?" Arwen scoffed. She crossed her hands over her chest and glared at him. "Just keep your pretty little head up their jeweled rears and out of mine. The only thing you need to worry about is the blast radius once I blow this place sky high."

"Jedi buddies?" Carth stared at her. "I'm not buddies with the jedi. They keep their own council, and I certainly wouldn't trust them if they did ask me to spy on someone...even someone like you."

"Oh, so you are a stalker."

"Sweetheart, you're as suspicious as they come. I'd rather not be responsible for another Revan turning up cause I let you slip past."

"Oh please, as if I'd pull a Revan." Arwen rolled her eyes. "That requires harbenging a modicum of respect to the jedi and the sith. Fuck em both."

Carth opened his mouth...and promptly closed it. He shrugged. "Fine. You just haven't been acting your usual self since the ruins though, and sneaking out here is suspicious. What does this place hold that actually makes someone like you care?"

Arwen face fell. She glanced away from Carth and hugged herself. "You see... This place… I watched my family die here."

Carth's jaw dropped. "Wow...I can't believe you actually said that." He crossed his arms. "You told me you're an amnesiac earlier, sweetheart, and the ruins can only be opened using the force. Lie better, darling."

Arwen clicked her tongue. She stood straight and put a hand on her hip. "Aw, too bad. It's just the kind of sappy story that you'd love." Arwen strode over to him and put rested her arms on his shoulders. "Cry baby cry and make your mother sigh." With that, she spun him around and kicked him out of the room. "Now get lost!"

Carth twisted with the move, managing to keep from losing his balance as he was shoved out. "Fine. But if whatever's here is dangerous, I'll find out." Grumbling he left the ruins entirely.

"Good riddance." Arwen snorted. She spun around on her heel and looked around the room once more. There wasn't much. Most of the writing on the wall was so faded it wasn't even worth trying to decipher. Her gaze fell onto a tiny cube, just big enough to fit her in her hands. A holocron. Arwen sauntered over and picked it up. It instantly started to glow and projected the image of a person.

The being had an elongated head, and frog like eyes in its face. Robes shrouded the rest of the body from being seen, but it was a fairly tall being. Welcome, Neophyte. You have passed the first trial in unlocking the secrets of the Star Forge. Our empire is great, but we can be stronger. Follow my guidance, and you will be one of the next leaders.

"Great… another cult. Just what I needed." Arwen huffed. "What do you mean first trial?"

The key to the Star Forge has been hidden across various slave planets: Korriban, Tatooine, Manaan, Kashyyyk. Each one will test your worthiness and teach you more. The completion of the full set of trials will reveal the secret to you.

"I don't need the secret, I just need the location."

Complete the trials, and unlock the key to the Star Forge.

"Didn't you hear me air for brains? I don't want the key. I'm not interested in getting inside, I just wanna blow it up. Now where is it?"

Only the worthy may access the Star Forge.

"Oh for fucks sake." Arwen pushed a fist into her forehead. "Okay, fine. Four planets. Test for idiots. Anything else I need to know?"

Embrace your darker urges.

"If you say so." Arwen pulled out her lightsaber and tossed the cube into the air. With one easy swing, she sliced the holocron in half. Satisfied that she had everything she needed. Arwen went back to her bag in the main room to start setting the charges. It took Arwen longer than she would have liked, but she wanted to make sure there'd be nothing left. Finally, when she was ready, she exited the cavern for the last time with an empty back and a detonator in hand.

Arwen jogged a safe distance away and pushed the button. A huge explosion rocked the canyon and sent a shockwave that knocked Arwen off her feet. Fireballs and rocks spewed into the air.

"WOO!" Arwen cried with jubilation. "Now that's what I'm talking about!"

Carth sprang up in shock. "WHAT THE VARPING SITHSPIT IS GOING ON?" He stared in shock as millennium old ruins blew sky high.

Arwen got to her feet. She brushed the dirt off her clothes while she admired her handiwork. A huge grin stretched across her face. Arwen turned and started back for the ship. She'd have to get ready to leave for those other planets. Then there was the matter of her contract with the Republic. Maybe she could put it on hold or just cancel it outright. Arwen could always sign back on later or join a company.

Carth stared after Arwen as she wandered off, casual as she pleased, as if she hadn't just blown up a huge stone tomb. He raced after her. "Hey! What the hell?"

"Actually we're on Dantooine." Arwen snickered. She glanced back at the burning hellscape behind them and the giant plumes of black smoke. "But I can see why you'd be confused."

"What's wrong with you, woman?"

"Nothing a good explosion can't fix." Arwen chimed. "Relax. No one got hurt. It was just a bunch of rubbish anyways."

"Then why did you blow it up?" Carth gritted out. She was hiding something. Something about those ruins had gotten to her.

"Because I didn't like it." Arwen replied flatly. "And because I wanted to."

Carth snorted. More lies. Well, he couldn't force her to tell. He'd just have to dig through what was left later.

"Don't snort!" she lightly chided. "Those robots kept going on about the masters and how much better their so called everlasting empire was. They called us slaves for crying out loud! The whole thing was just a damned ruse to find those who were 'worthy' of meeting the masters or whatever. They're all skeletons anyways."

"Hm." That still didn't sound like something that would set the mercenary off, unless she had a history with slavery. Maybe that had been the memory trigger? He nodded slowly. "Right. Well, can't change anything now."

Arwen chuckled. "Nope. All that's left is to suppress some nasty memories with lots of booze." And talk to Carth about her contract, but that would come later.

Carth winced slightly. Slavery it was. "I've got some good tarisian ale in the cockpit," he offered.

"Oh, you are a lifesaver."


End file.
